All I Ask of You
by TwilightNocturne74
Summary: He made her song take wing. He taught her to fly. He was her angel... DMGW HPGW
1. The angel

**All I Ask of You**

**This is my first ever Draco/Ginny fic. I'm very excited! Please read and tell me what you think. (hint: REVIEW!)**

**Disclaimer: This is the part of the fanfiction where I say something clever to get your attention and at the same time briefly mention that I don't own the Harry Potter series.

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It was raining outside, dark even at 2 in the afternoon. Draco could not take his gaze away from the window, where storm clouds threatened anyone who dared to go outside that day. His life as a Slytherin prince was not what he expected it to be at all. It was his 7th year at Hogwarts, and from all the stories his father told him, things weren't as good as they could be. His friends were boring and quite idiotic; they were more like minions than actual friends. All the girls were either ugly or too shy. What was Slytherin House coming to?

"Mr. Malfoy, please pay attention! If you don't pass this class, you won't graduate!" Professor Flagg, the new Muggle Studies teacher shouted at Draco, who soon remembered he was still in class. Draco had been forced to take Muggle Studies since he failed Divination last marking period, and he was stuck sitting next to Ginevra Weasley, who insulted him at least once a day. All he asked was to get through the year without failing, so why did he have to put up with her every day?

"Today we will be studying muggle literature of the late 19th, early 20th century. Who has read or heard of the Phantom of the Opera by French muggle author, Gaston Leroux?" Hermione Granger's hand shot up in the air immediately.

"My mum read it to me when I was very little," she explained. Draco smirked. Of course a mudblood like Granger would've read a stupid muggle book.

"Well, you're going to be reading it again, then," Professor Flagg took out her wand and waved it. About a dozen books flew out of the closet and onto each of the students' desks.

"Open your books to chapter 1. Who would like to begin reading?" Hermione's hand shot in the air once again. As Hermione began to read, Draco's eyes wandered across the room, stopping and staring, trance-like, at the girl next to him.

"**-**_the girl with the tip-tilted nose, the forget-me-not eyes, the rose-red cheeks, and the lily-white neck and shoulders_**-**..." the description which Hermione read fit Ginny Weasley perfectly. Draco hated the girl, despite her beauty; their families were exact opposites and bitter rivals. The Weasleys were a poor, muggle-loving, Gryffindor family, and the Malfoys were a rich, pureblood, Slytherin family.

"_The ghost had appeared to them in the shape of a gentleman in dress clothes, who had suddenly stood before them without their knowing where he came from. He seemed to have loomed through the wall_."

"That's good, Ms. Granger. Now class, remember, this book was written by a muggle, so the sight of a person appearing out of nowhere is supposed to be frightening and unheard of," Professor Flagg explained. Draco yawned. Muggle studies were so boring...

At the end of class, Draco put his copy of _The Phantom_ in his bag and headed out the door, bumping in to Ginny on his way.

"Watch where you're going, _Malfoy_," she sneered.

"Don't get in my way, _Red_," He stared at her, and she rolled her eyes at him. Why did she have to mock him?

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Ginny watched Malfoy's back as he strode out of the room. He walked with such grace that you could've mistaken him for royalty. That's what he thought he was, anyway. He was treated like a prince; spoiled rotten. Ginny was dirt poor, and she envied him so. She longed for a bit of attention, and she was certainly not getting it from Gryffindor. She was the youngest of 7 children and the only girl, and she always felt left out. When she was younger, she had a huge crush on Harry Potter, but thoughts of a relationship with him faded away after she was possessed by Lord Voldemort and he had to save her. Harry Potter was quite the popular guy, but not the right one for her. Draco Malfoy, however, was something else. A Slytherin prince and Harry's rival, he was the nastiest person Ginny knew. And he was drop dead gorgeous. She hadn't known Draco that well, but she did know him by reputation, and she made sure to insult him at least once a day, now that she had a class with him. Muggle Studies was the last place on earth you would expect to find Draco Malfoy. He would certainly not last more than a month.

Sighing, Ginny left the classroom and dreamily walked off to the Gryffindor common room. She was about to go up to her room to change out of her school robes, when Hermione stopped her.

"You dropped you book," she said.

"Oh, thanks." Ginny absentmindedly took _The Phantom _out of Hermione's hands.

"Are you okay, Ginny?" Hermione asked.

"Huh? Oh... Didn't get much sleep last night. I'm tired," she explained, "I think I'll just take a nap." With that, she headed for her room and sat on her bed. Thank god it was Friday. Yawning, Ginny picked up the book Hermione handed her and flipped open to where they left off in class...

Ginny fell asleep in the middle of reading, not sure whether or not she actually finished the book. She remembered that it was very good and at certain parts she was entranced by the story. Images flashed through her mind as she slept. Herself. Her family. Harry. Hermione. Draco. Professor Flagg. An empty stage. A ballerina. A mask. A scorpion. A man and a woman dancing alone on a rooftop. She heard the sound of a boy's laughter. She heard the faint sound of music. She heard a scream. She woke up.

What did that dream mean? Ginny was lying on her bed, her book open in her lap. She looked at the page. She had been on the second to last chapter before she fell asleep. She checked her clock. Midnight. Feeling restless, she got out of bed. Throwing a golden silk robe around her shoulders, she took her broomstick out of her closet and opened the window. Her roommate stirred, but did not awaken. She climbed out of the window and let her broomstick take her for a ride around the school grounds. She had never done this before, but ever since she'd gotten a broomstick, she wanted to try it. Of course, she could never stay up late enough to sneak out.

Zooming gently along the Hogwarts Lake, Ginny let the wind blow at her hair. She flew next over the Forbidden Forest, enchanted by the dark, ominous trees as their leaves swayed in the wind. Next she hovered over by the quidditch pitch, but stopped in her tracks as she noticed a figure flying around the goalposts on the farther side. She flew behind a tree, hoping the figure wouldn't notice her, and watched intently.

Wanting to get a better look, Ginny glided along the trees until she was really close. The figure flew around the goalposts, up and down, in and out, and upside down. Whoever that person was, he or she loved to fly. Ginny smiled at that. Who could this person be that had the same love of flying as she did? Her vision through the branches was blurry, and as she pushed some leaves out of her face, the figure heard her and flew towards her.

"Who's there?" It was a guy's voice. Seeing Ginny, he grabbed her arm and pulled her through the branches.

"_Weasley_," he sneered. It was Draco Malfoy. Ginny struggled out of his grip.

"What are you doing out here so late at night, Malfoy?" Ginny asked.

"I should be asking you that, Red," he said.

"Can't sleep," she confessed.

"I supposed flying around school grounds is going to help you sleep?" he said.

"What about you, Draco?"

"I don't sleep." Ginny shivered at the way he said that. It was creepy. He must've meant that he didn't sleep at night. He was always sleeping or daydreaming during Muggle Studies.

"I didn't know you actually liked to fly. I just thought you played quidditch to show off," said Ginny.

"For your information, Ginny, quidditch is one of the few things that keeps me alive. It's a beautiful thing, and it's what I love," he said.

"The way you worded that was... very interesting. Strangely, I feel the same way about quidditch as you do."

"No you don't. Believe me, nobody knows how I feel," he said.

"Yes I do. I may not have as good a broomstick as you do, and I'm not as good at flying as you are, but I have an undying love for quidditch." Draco studied her. Honesty was emanating from her.

"Let me see you do a trick."

"What?" Her response made him laugh.

"Do a trick with your broomstick. Let me see."

"I don't know any tricks," she said truthfully. Laughing more, Draco steadied his broomstick and put both of his feet on top. He slowly stood up, balancing himself.

"Wow, that's great," Ginny said, holding her hand over her mouth in awe. He laughed again.

"I'm not even done, Weasley, just wait." Still standing, Draco flew around in circles, slowly at first, then speeding up. Ginny became dizzy watching him go around and around, and when he was going too fast for her to see, she started shrieking.

"Malfoy! You're going to fall, stop!" Slowing down, Draco grinned at the girl and gave her a little push. She shrieked, almost falling off of her broom.

"You need to learn balance, Red," he said with a laugh. She hated his laugh. It was so cold, so malevolent.

"Do you think it's funny?" He shook his head.

"It's sad, actually. You have a lot to learn."

"What, are you going to give me lessons now?" Draco's grin widened.

"If you want me to," he said, giving her a look she would not forget. Was he serious?

"Um..."

"You won't have to pay me of course. Well, you can pay me with your company. I'm tired of hanging around with Crabbe and Goyle."

"Um..."

"So is that a yes?" he asked. He was really being sincere, wasn't he? Finding her voice, Ginny answered:

"When will we meet?"

"If that's a yes, then how about same time, same place, every day?" he asked. Ginny nodded.

"That sounds good to me." Draco smiled at her. He looked so much more handsome when he smiled. Ginny grinned at the thought of having made a new friend.

"Oh, and nobody knows about this, okay?" he asked.

"Cross my heart and hope to die," she said sincerely.

"Good."

"Uh... I'm going to go back to my room now," she said, flying off. He caught up to her.

"I'll escort you." They flew back to Ginny's open window and Draco waved as Ginny climbed in.

"I'll see you tomorrow night," he said.

Ginny watched him fly off and then closed her window. Laying on her bed and thinking of what just happened, a smile crept across her face.

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**A/N: the first quote from _Phantom of the Opera_ describes Jammes, one of the chorus girls. I was reading it in the first chapter and thought I'd use it to describe Ginny. Anyway, I hope you liked this and there's more to come if you review!**


	2. lessons

**Chapter 2**

The next morning, Ginny had a slight headache. Nonchalantly she grabbed a potion out of the drawer and took a sip, feeling better instantaneously.

"Where did you go last night? I saw you climb in the window in the middle of the night." Ginny froze. She was busted by her roommate.

"I, er... I can't say," she said, remembering her promise to Draco. Raising her eyebrow at the red head, Ginny's roommate shrugged.

"I suppose it's none of my business anyway," she said.

Ginny stood up and studied herself in the mirror. Her hair was a wreck, and she had slept in her clothes.

"_Accio brush_," she muttered, and a small black hairbrush flew into her hands. She began brushing her hair, making sure it was perfect before she went out. She then picked out a nice outfit to wear for the day.

Throwing on a pink tee with an old pair of blue jeans, Ginny was ready for quidditch practice. There was a game on Monday, and the Gryffindor quidditch captain, Katie Bell, had the quidditch pitch booked all weekend long.

Arriving at the quidditch pitch, Ginny noticed Harry flying around on his broom. He was the only one there. She sat down, watching him fly with such grace. He didn't seem to notice her. Finally, the rest of the team entered the pitch and practice began.

Katie released the quaffle, then the bludgers, and finally, the snitch. Ginny mounted her broomstick and took off unsteadily. She evened herself out, and followed the two other chasers. Katie Bell had the quaffle, and was headed towards Ron. She threw the little red ball towards the goal post that was furthest from Ron, and it went in.

"Ron, you're horrible today!" Ginny reproached her brother. He wasn't usually good at quidditch anyway, but she wasn't going to rub it in.

"I tried to block it!" he argued.

"Hey, Red! Heads up!" Katie had passed the quaffle to Ginny, who caught it. She glanced at Ron and smiled mischievously. Heading towards the goal, she began to gain speed. Ron flew around each of the posts, but he wasn't fast enough. Ginny scored a goal on him in the middle post. Feeling confident, she stood up on her broomstick the way Draco had done last night. She flew down toward the ground and hovered over there, sticking her tongue out at Ron. He flew down to chase after her, and she took off in the opposite direction. He was faster than her, and by the time he had gotten close enough, she tried to speed up, but lost her balance and fell. She was fortunate to only be a few feet in the air.

"What are you trying to do, Gin?" Ron flew over to help her up.

"I'm sorry," she held her head in shame and walked away, rubbing her butt, which she'd fallen on. She was embarrassed and didn't need her brother to be worried about her. Taking a seat in the stands, she watched the rest of the team practice. Kirke and Sloper, the Gryffindor beaters, were hitting the bludger violently back and forth at each other. Harry was playing with the snitch. He let it fly a few feet, then caught it, and then let it go a little further. Ron resumed trying to block the quaffle, but was doing a poor job at it.

Feeling better, Ginny got on her broomstick, but did not go back to practice. Instead, she flew around by the other side of the pitch. She was surprised to see Draco there on his broom.

"Hey, Weasley," he said with a smirk, flying over by her. _Oh God,_ thought Ginny_, did he see me fall?_

"Hi Draco," she said plainly.

"I saw that little performance and I must say I was quite impressed," he said.

"You were?"

"Even though you fell on your ass. Actually, that was the best part," he said with a laugh.

"Thank you," she said sarcastically. "So what are you up to?"

"Just practicing for Monday's game. Gryffindor has the pitch booked all weekend, and I figured I could practice over here by myself. Not that I need the practice, though," he said.

"Of course. Since you're so great," she said.

"You wish you could fly like me," he bragged. Then he hung onto his broom and turned upside down, flying around.

"Look, no hands!" he shouted, and took his hands off the broomstick while hanging on with his legs. Ginny had never known somebody could be this talented at flying.

"That's so cool!" she said.

"You want to be able to do this?" He asked. Ginny thought of being able to impress Ron, Harry, her friends, and the entire school. She nodded her head.

"Then don't forget to come tonight for lessons," he said.

"Yeah, um, I'll see you, then," she turned to leave.

"Wait, Weasley. I'm bored. Hang out with me," he said.

"Is that an order or a request?" Ginny queried. Draco narrowed his eyes at her.

"It's an order," he said.

"I don't want to hang out with you, Malfoy," she answered. Draco threw his head back and laughed.

"You're funny, Red. No, really, hang out with me."

"Is this because you have nothing better to do?" Ginny asked.

"No. I came out here to fly."

"And to get away from your loser friends, right?"

"Crabbe and Goyle aren't losers. They're just stupid," Draco argued.

"Whatever."

"Hey, Weasley, you haven't insulted me yet today," Draco pointed out.

"You're right. Hmm... You're a cruel person," she said.

"That's it?"

"You're cruel, but you have a soft side as well."

"Ouch, that hurts," he said.

"I thought it would," she said, and with that, she left Draco standing there, thinking over what she had just said to him. Did he have a soft side?

That night Ginny lay down in her bed, thinking about Draco. Why had she told him that he had a soft side? For one thing, he wasn't being an arrogant jerk towards her anymore. But that was something she couldn't comprehend.

Ginny noticed _the Phantom_ lying on her nightstand and picked it up. Flipping open to the page where she had left off, she began to read:

**"In one of the caskets, you will find a scorpion, in the other, a grasshopper... they will say yes or no for you. If you turn the scorpion... you have said yes. The grasshopper will mean no."**

She had already read this part, but wanted to read it over and over again. Closing her eyes in the middle of reading, Ginny began to have strange visions once more. Harry. Ron. Draco. A scorpion. A mask. Music. Dancing. Singing. Screaming.

"No!" Ginny shrieked and sat up.

"Ginny! Calm down," Draco Malfoy put a hand on her shoulder.

"M-Malfoy... how'd you get in here? What time is it?" she asked.

"It's 12, and you left your window open," he answered.

"Oh."

"I'm sorry I woke you up," he apologized.

"It wasn't you. It was this strange dream I've been having. Last night it woke me up at midnight, too," she said.

"What did you see in this dream of yours?" he asked.

"People I know."

"Which people?"

"Myself, Harry and Ron, and... you. And I saw silhouettes of people I couldn't recognize. I saw a scorpion and a mask, and heard music, and a scream," Ginny explained.

"Well, what do you think this means?"

"Maybe it symbolizes something?" Ginny asked.

"Or maybe somebody's messing with your mind by sending you these dreams," Draco said coldly. Ginny shivered and Draco laughed, assuring her that he was only joking.

"Are you ready for your lesson, Weasley?" he asked.

"Yes."

"Get up and put some shoes on, then," he demanded.

"Yes, sir," Ginny saluted. She slipped on her sneakers and grabbed her broomstick.

"Let's go," said Draco. Ginny obediently followed him out of the window. They flew, side by side, to the quidditch pitch. The wind blew Ginny's hair in her face and she turned her head. Draco, feeling her eyes on him, turned to meet her gaze. For just an instant, Ginny felt that she had some sort of power over Draco. Perhaps it was the way he stared at her in that moment that made her feel superior to him. But the Fates would only allow that feeling of power to last for a moment, for Draco then glowered at her. She looked away, hating herself for even thinking about him in the first place. Yet, she wondered what he would look like if only he'd smile more often. She would certainly like it.

That night Draco had taught Ginny how to steady herself on her broomstick before taking off. This was essential to her flying, and she would become much faster. The night after that, she learned to flatten her body to her broomstick in order to gain speed. Both nights Draco would work her to her fullest, and she would come back to her room exhausted. Monday came before she knew it.

**Sorry for such a short chapter!! I'll try to make up for it, but I can't promise anything since I got a D in Chemistry and my parents might take away my computer privileges soon. Seeing as I have a lot of reviewers for the first chapter, I will thank each of you: **

**Beckysue2: Sorry to steal your idea, dear. You had that song sung at your wedding? How old are you? - Don't answer that. It's just that I didn't think I had older readers since I'm only in high school and I'm flattered that you enjoy my story. Thanks!!**

**Xnovemberx: thanks! It's good to know my stories don't sound like a children's book, and it's also sad that the Harry Potter series are considered children's books, but I'm hoping one day I can be as great as J.K. herself. **

**ObsessivePerfectionist: I love your username! It describes a lot of people I know, including myself. Thanks for the tip; I'll try to make it seem more J.K. Rowling-worthy.**

**SlytherinsWench: Thanks! I hope you enjoy this chapter and what's to come.**

**Evil twinkle: thank you, and I'll try to update as much as possible.**

**Dracosbaby7: Thanks. I was waiting a while for someone to write a HP/POTO fanfic, so I figured I'd write one myself.**

**Nahemwe: hmm... let's wait and see where my fanfic goes, and if you still like it after a couple of chapters, you can do that. It sounds like a good idea.**

**Missmee: thanks! Which songs have you heard and which do you like?**

**Bookluva629: I think you are the first reviewer to notice that, but I guess I sort of made it obvious in the summary, didn't I? Well, thanks!**

**Thank you so much, guys!!! Keep reviewing; I want to hear what you think!**


	3. quidditch

**Disclaimer: Everything you recognize as JK Rowling's work is JK Rowling's work, and everything you recognize as Gaston Leroux's work is Gaston Leroux's work. In fact, the only thing here that I own is the plot.

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**Chapter 3**

In Muggle Studies on Monday, Ginny sat in her usual seat next to Draco. She could feel him staring at her, as if she was the most interesting thing in the class. She was uncertain of why he was doing it, but it sickened her.

"Good Afternoon, class. Today I've brought in some music from the muggle musical, _the Phantom of the Opera_," Professor Flagg said, "This musical was inspired by the novel which we are reading in class." She brought out a boom box and pressed 'play'. Loud, but beautiful music emanated from the speakers. No words were heard at first, just a beautifully orchestrated classical song.

Ginny was enchanted by this muggle music. Stealing a quick look at Draco, she noticed he didn't seem to enjoy it. He looked at her and smirked. But… he was tapping his foot along with the music! Perhaps he did like it. The song ended and a new one began, this time with words and a voice that blew Ginny away.

**Night-time sharpens,  
heightens each sensation ...  
Darkness stirs and  
wakes imagination ...  
Silently the senses  
abandon their defenses ...**

Ginny glanced at Draco again, but he had stopped tapping his foot. He checked the clock, looking impatient, and raised his hand.

"Yes, Draco?" Professor Flagg turned the music down a little.

"The quidditch players have to leave early to get ready for the game today," he reminded her. She glared at the clock.

"Right. You may go, then," she said. Ginny stood up with Draco. She had almost forgotten that she'd be playing against his team today. As they left the room, he turned to her.

"Good luck, Weasley. Try not to fall on your ass this time," he said. He extended a hand, which Ginny hesitantly shook.

"Thanks, Malfoy. Good luck to you, too." They both went their separate ways; Ginny to the Gryffindor girls' locker room, and Draco to the Slytherin boys' locker room.

Ginny stretched and yawned as she entered the locker room. It had been a long day for her, and this game wouldn't make it any shorter. The room was occupied by the two other girls on the team, who were occupied with chatting their heads off. They were ditzy in Ginny's mind, but she knew that they were also great at quidditch and get lots of attention for it.

"We're gonna win today, right Ginny?" Katie Bell asked. Ginny sighed. Before a game was the only time any of those girls acknowledged her. She nodded her head and proceeded getting changed. The girls resumed their chat and Ginny tried to hear what they were so wrapped up in.

"No way!"

"I heard they got caught shagging in the library!"

"They weren't shagging, they were _snogging_…"

"Maybe they didn't even kiss!"

"But they did!"

"I heard _he_ didn't kiss _her_! _She_ kissed _him_!"

"That's not what I heard!"

"Do you know what happened?"

It took Ginny a moment to realize they were talking to her. She shook her head.

"You don't? Did you hear anything?"

"No."

"Well, I'll tell you what happened."

"No, let me tell!"

"No way! I'll tell!"

"You're going to tell it wrong!"

"No I'm not!"

"Yeas you will! Now, I'll tell her what happened. Anyway, Ginny, what happened is- well, we think it happened- but Harry Potter has a new girlfriend. Some second year caught them kissing in the library. Personally, I think she kissed him, but he didn't kiss her back," Katie explained this and yet Ginny still wasn't sure what was going on.

"Who are we talking about?"

"_Loony_ Lovegood and Harry Potter."

"Luna?"

"Do you know if they're involved?"

"I don't think Harry likes Luna as more than a friend, really. I know that she used to have a crush on him. Maybe she still does," Ginny remembered when she used to like Harry Potter. But those days were over.

"Well she certainly likes him enough to kiss him," said Alicia, the other chaser.

Ginny turned around and headed for the door, all the while mumbling to herself, "Harry and Luna. Harry and Luna. Harry and Luna…"

"What about Luna and me?" Outside of the locker room, Harry overheard Ginny muttering.

"Harry! Oh… I'm sorry, I… Some of the girls heard a rumor about you and Luna kissing. Is it true?"

"Yes." Ginny wasn't sure how to react to his answer. She was shocked that Harry would kiss a girl so easily, but happy for Luna, too.

"Yes? Do you like her then?"

"No."

"Then why did you kiss her?"

"I didn't. She kissed me," he said plainly.

"Well, how do you feel about it?"

"I don't know. But…" he sighed, "Luna kissed me because she really, really likes me. And… the feeling isn't mutual."

"Did you tell her?"

"No."

"The game's about to start! Come on!" Katie called over to Ginny and Harry.

"Where's your broom?" Ginny hadn't realized that she didn't have her broom. She must've left it in her room from last night.

"I think it's in my room. _Accio broom_," she said, and after it didn't come she repeated herself, "_Accio_ _broom_!"

"Where is it?" Harry asked. Just then the broomstick flew over Harry's head and into Ginny's hands.

"Here it is. Let's go," she grinned and pulled Harry onto the quidditch pitch. It was a clear day; not a cloud in the sky. Ginny quickly tied her hair back into a bun and mounted her broomstick. Suddenly the bleachers started filling up with students, and Madam Hooch gave the signal for the game to begin.

Ginny took off into the air along with the rest of the team. Ron flew up to the goal posts, Harry flew off to find the snitch, and Ginny followed Katie and Alicia. The quaffle was released, and it looked as if Katie was going to get a hold of it first. She always did. Ginny sped past Katie and grabbed the quaffle, spinning around and heading fast toward the Slytherin goal post. Nobody was able to keep up with her; not even the bludgers. Ginny shot the quaffle into the middle post, and the keeper had just missed it. Not even a minute had gone by and she had already scored a goal for her team. The crowd of Gryffindors roared with excitement and Ginny couldn't help but smile.

Slytherin had the quaffle now. Ginny caught up with the Slytherin Chaser and tried to knock it out of his hands, but failed. A bludger was sent her way and she dodged it immediately. She kept up with the Slytherin until they had reached the Gryffindor goal posts. Ginny's eyes met with her brother's. Ron winked at her, and she backed up, giving the chaser room to throw the quaffle. Katie caught up and looked at her.

"I have faith in Ron this time," Ginny explained, and sure enough, Ron caught the quaffle and threw it back in. Ginny got it this time and sped to the other side of the pitch without any obstacles. She aimed for the left goal post, but missed terribly. Turning around, she brushed pashed Draco on his broomstick, who smirked at her.

"Don't you dare make fun of me, Malfoy!"

"I'm not. I just want you to know that tonight we're working on throwing the quaffle, okay?"

"Oh. Well, okay. But don't laugh because I have horrible aim! I'd rather be a seeker than a chaser, but Harry took that position."

"That's because Potter's a dork-wad," said Draco, and Ginny couldn't help but let out a laugh. It was the first time she thought one of Draco's insults was funny.

"No he's not. He's a sweetie, really," said Ginny.

"Oh yeah, such a sweetie," Draco said mockingly. Ginny frowned.

"Hey, look! Is that the snitch?" Draco turned his head and Ginny flew off, rejoining the game. Katie had just scored a goal, and Slytherin had the quaffle. One of the Gryffindor beaters sent a bludger towards the Slytherin, who dropped the quaffle. Ginny grabbed it and flew towards the goal.

Ginny gripped onto the quaffle confidently and grinned. She could score more than one goal, couldn't she? She threw the quaffle, and this time it went straight for the middle hoop with perfect aim. The Slytherin Keeper blocked the shot, however. Draco flew over to her and scoffed.

"You suck, Weasley," he said.

"I know."

"Did you just agree with me?"

"Yes."

"Oh. Well, at least you're miserable."

"I'm not miserable. I'm just unsatisfied," she explained. Draco flew next to her and slinked an arm around her waist.

"You were brilliant, though. You have _nothing_ to be unsatisfied about."

"I try," she said, trying to sound casual but slightly cringing. Draco pulled his arm away.

"Do you? I taught you to fly, and today, you flew as swift as the wind itself," he said proudly.

"And I thank you for that," she said. Just then Ginny noticed a flicker of light by her left eye. Something golden, something she and Draco had both been trained to seek out, was hovering right by her face.

"Are you going to sit there, or are you going to catch the snitch?" Ginny asked, grinning widely. Draco smiled in amusement and reached out his hand towards her face. His warm, soft fingertips gently brushed against her fair skin. Ginny looked straight ahead and noticed Harry flying towards them. He must have seen the snitch, too. But it was too late, for Draco's fingers closed around the snitch, and he waved it up in the air like a trophy as the crowd of Slytherins cheered. Slytherin won the game, but Ginny played well. She was satisfied, and headed back to the locker room with a smile on her face.

"Ginny," Ron stopped his sister in the hall.

"Yes?"

"What was going on towards the end of the game? When Malfoy caught the snitch, he was talking to you."

"Oh. We were just talking about, well, about the game. He was actually insulting my lack of aim, when the snitch flew right by my face," Ginny said. Ron snarled.

"That Malfoy is always insulting us about quidditch. Apparently he missed the entire beginning of the game when you got the quaffle in."

"Yeah, sure," said Ginny.

"I mean, you were brilliant today, Gin! Nobody was able to keep up with you!"

"I know."

"Your brother's right," Katie Bell entered the scene, "I couldn't even keep up. What's your secret?"

"Well, I'm sort of taking lessons from someone," said Ginny.

"Who?" Katie and Ron said in unison.

"I can't say who, but I will say that he is a master at quidditch," said Ginny.

"Well, it doesn't matter who it is, as long as you're happy, right?" asked Ron.

"I don't know if I'm happy about it… but no, I suppose it shouldn't really matter."

"Do you think maybe one day you could let us know who this mysterious teacher is?" asked Katie. Ginny hesitated.

"I really don't think so," she said, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm exhausted and I need to change out of these quidditch robes." She entered the girl's locker rooms, took off her shirt and threw it on a nearby bench. Ginny looked at herself in the mirror. Her hair was long; it fell past her chest and almost reached her waist. She needed to get it cut. Her figure was almost perfect, but in her eyes it was not. She had curves in all the wrong places. She started to build some stomach muscles from flying so often. Her breasts were too small for her taste; although she was a size B, she felt flat chested next to the other girls. Sighing, Ginny grabbed her regular clothes and threw them on, when she heard a knock at the door. Katie and Alicia had already left, so who could be here?

"Who is it?"

"It's me." Ginny immediately recognized the voice.

"What are you doing at the girl's locker room, Malfoy?"

"Are you dressed?"

"Yes."

"Then let me in," he answered. Ginny didn't bother asking questions as she opened the door for Draco.

"I wanted to talk to you," he explained.

"About what? And why are we in the locker room?"

"We don't want anyone to see us, do we?"

"No."

"So… why'd you let us win? You could've hidden the snitch from me," asked Draco.

"You deserved it. You've been teaching me to fly," said Ginny. Draco grinned cheekily, then frowned at Ginny's lack of enthusiasm.

"What's wrong? You look tired."

"I am tired. I played for you, today," she replied.

"Thank you." Something triggered in Ginny's memory: another passage from that muggle book, a conversation between Christine and the Phantom.

'**Are you very tired?'**

'**Oh, tonight, I gave you my soul and I am dead!'**

'**Your soul is a beautiful thing, child… and I thank you. No emperor ever received so fair a gift. _The angels wept tonight_.'**

"I still think there's something wrong that you're not telling me," said Draco.

"What? There's nothing wrong. I'm going to go do my homework, or something," Ginny turned to leave.

"Wait, I thought you were tired," he said.

"Well, suddenly I'm feeling very restless. I need some fresh air."

"Come for a ride with me, then."

"Where?"

"Around," he grabbed her arm and led her outside.

"Where are we going, Malfoy?"

"Get your broom," he ordered. When they both had their brooms, Draco took off and Ginny followed him closely. The wind kept blowing her hair in her face, the sun was in her eyes, and the only thing she could see was Draco, so she kept on following wherever he was leading her.

Draco slowed down to let Ginny catch up with him. He stared straight ahead and smiled.

"What is it?"

"Hogwarts Hill," he stated.

"What's so special about Hogwarts Hill?"

"You can see the entire school grounds from up there. Plus, on top is that old myrtle tree, you know, the one they call Lover's Tree. The branches arch over, covering whoever stands underneath it from prying eyes. It's a perfect place to make out." Ginny's eyes widened. Was Draco bringing her here to 'make out'? Her face turned a deep red until Draco started cracking up with laughter.

"Weasley, you're killing me! You think that's why I brought you here? Ha!" Ginny's face grew even redder.

"Don't be silly, Malfoy! I didn't actually think you were serious."

"You are a _horrible_ liar, Ginevra. Anyway, do you at least want to see what it's like up there?"

"Excuse me?"

"Not under the tree, I mean on top of the hill," said Draco.

"Oh. Alright Malfoy, I'll race you to the top." Ginny took off before Draco could realize what she had just said.

"Hey!" He took out his wand and charmed her broom to stop moving.

"Hey! No cheating! Fix my broom right now!" Ginny yelled. Smirking, Draco caught up to where she was hovering in midair.

"Relax, Weasel, it'll only last a few more seconds," he leaned his arm on her shoulder.

"Fine. You still cheated."

"No I didn't. As soon as you can move your broomstick, we'll continue the race, okay?" Ginny glared at him and smiled.

"Fine with me," she took off, once again leaving Draco in the dust.

"Hey!" This time he chased after her. Catching up, he tackled Ginny and they both fell onto the side of the hill, tumbling down to the bottom. Draco laughed and Ginny shrieked as he landed on top of her.

"Not used to having a guy on top of you?" he leered.

"So what if I'm not?" she blushed.

"Wanna see what it's like?" Ginny stared blankly at him, trying to figure out if he was serious or not.

"Well? You seem a bit indecisive," he said. Ginny glared angrily at him.

"Get the hell offa me!" she pushed him away and stood up. Her robes were covered with dirt and she brushed herself off.

"That was kind of a delayed reaction there, Weasley. I'm getting the feeling you liked having me on top of you," Draco joked.

"Shut up, Malfoy!" She grabbed her broomstick, which had fallen down the hill with her, and mounted it.

"Don't leave! We didn't get to the top of the hill yet!"

"And what if I don't want to go to the top of the hill with you?" Draco grabbed her arm tightly.

"Come on, _Ginny_," Draco said in a rather seductive tone, "you know you want to go under Lover's Tree with me."

"I don't! Now stop goofing off and let go of my arm!"

"At least just sit up there for two minutes and talk to me!"

"No!" Ginny yanked her arm free of his grasp.

"Well at least tell me why not?"

"Because you're a selfish brat who's used to getting his way and needs to learn a lesson! You're really pissing me off, Draco!"

"What did you call me?" Draco grinned. He had caught Ginevra calling him by his first name. Ginny hesitated.

"I called you Draco, because you're not the bad person I thought you were. You're friendly to me, and I appreciate that. But right now you need to take 'no' for an answer, okay?" He nodded.

"Fine. Maybe some other day, then?"

"I can't promise you," she said. Draco sighed.

"_Ginny_… are we friends, then?" he asked.

"Only under certain circumstances."

"What?"

"Just kidding. I will consider you… an ally. Someone I can talk to when nobody else will listen. And you have to be there when I need you, okay?"

"Okay."

"Good. Let's go back to the castle now. It's getting late." Ginny took off, Draco not too far behind her.

* * *

**This has been my longest chapter and it took me forever to write, but I finally finished. You'd better enjoy it! Hehe… Please tell me what you think and also let me know what you would like to see in the coming chapters. I'm open to suggestions, although I cannot promise you anything. Did you like the lyrics from _Phantom of the Opera_? Should I put in some other songs from the musical? Tell me!**

**To my faithful reviewers:**

**Missmee- those are some good songs. I'll have to put the lyrics to one of those in a future chapter. Thanks again.**

**Beckysue2- I'm not going to explain the nightmares for a while, so you'll just have to figure it out for yourself first. Anyway, it's weird that I don't know the age of most of my reviewers. I didn't think adults would read my story, since I'm only 15. But incase you're the only one, thank you. Happy anniversary, by the way. **

**Bookluva629- hmm… thank you. Like I've said, I'm probably going to put more songs in, so let me know which ones you like. Have you seen _the Phantom_ before? **

**Aelys- Thanks. And my parents didn't get too mad about my grades, so I'll be able to write this whenever I feel like it. But thank you for the offer.**

**BronzeToast- how's this for a long chapter? Honestly, I have to say you were my motivation for this chapter. But let me know what you think of the story, too.**

**The Fayt in Purple- Your username reminds me of something. Does it have any significance? Let me know when your fic comes up so I can read and review it.**

**Slytheringurl08- thanks, and let me know when your fic comes up. I'll be happy to review it.**

**Eve Granger- thanks. And as usual, I'll keep writing if you keep reviewing.**


	4. stars and visions

**Wow… it's been so long. I feel terrible having not updated in a month. Well, I've had a writer's block for a while, but on top of that, I just haven't had time. I got so caught up in real life… And real life's been such a bitch. Happy to be back in fantasy land now. . I read this story over and realized that there are quite a few typos that need to be fixed. Since I barely have time to update my stories, I have to say they won't be fixed any time soon. So bear with me! On that note, enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 4**

When they returned to Hogwarts, Ginny was even wearier than before. She said goodbye to Draco and went straight to her room. Slumping onto her bed, Ginny pulled a blanket over herself and fell asleep.

A hand touched her arm lightly. She stirred, her eyelids fluttering, and looked to see who was there, half expecting it to be Draco. But there was nobody there. Ginny shivered. She looked over the side of her bed and realized her covers had fallen off. She picked up the blanket and wrapped it around her body. Closing her eyes again, Ginny felt warm and safe with the blanket around her. She listened to the sound of her and her roommate breathing while they both slept. Her roommate's breathing sounded heavier than usual. Suddenly, it stopped. She heard it once more, this time in softer, shorter breaths. The sound was closer to her this time. Why? She opened her eyes, but nobody was there. She checked the time; 11:15. Her roommate was sound asleep, and her breathing could barely be heard. Ginny closed her eyes and tried to sleep.

Ginny's eyes opened suddenly, and she checked the clock. It was 12 exactly. She hadn't gotten much time to sleep; yet she vaguely remembered having more visions while she slept. Something tapped at her window. She got out of bed and opened it, staring straight into the eyes of Draco. They were gleaming at her.

"Hey, Draco," she muttered sleepily.

"Hello, love. You mind if we skip tonight's lesson? I'm really not in the mood," he said.

"Why didn't you say so before?" Ginny was aggravated.

"Something came up. I'm sorry I woke you up again," he said.

"Um… that's fine. Is that all?"

"Yes. Goodnight." He left.

Ginny stumbled over to her bed and fell asleep right away. In her mind she saw a scene- not like those visions she had the other nights- but a perfectly clear scene. Although she was seeing this from what seemed like a far view, she could make out that there were three people; two boys and a girl. The girl had red hair, one of the boys had striking blond hair, and the other boy had messy black hair and glasses. There was something wrong with the scene. The girl and the boy with the glasses were holding onto each other. The other boy was scowling at them, and he held out a wand. Ginny could now see his face closely, and she jumped (A/N: although she's asleep; I jump in my sleep a lot, I don't know if anyone else does), for she realized it was Draco she was staring at. But… something was different about him. She noticed his wand was pointed at the other two, whom she recognized as Harry and herself. The face of the girl turned towards her- but it was not Ginny's face! It was somebody else… someone with green eyes. And now Harry turned his face, but he was different, too. This boy had hazel eyes and was missing a certain lightning-shaped scar. And Draco… well, that wasn't Draco. It looked almost exactly like him, but for the silver eyes he had. Draco's eyes were icy blue. Ginny decided she must be in another reality, perhaps another dimension of some sort.

Now Ginny heard a sound- a sort of tapping noise. She looked around, but it wasn't coming from the dream; it was coming from the outside world. She struggled to open her eyes. When she did, the first thing she looked at was the window. Draco's face was in it, and she immediately got up and opened the window.

"What is it now?" she demanded.

"Can we talk?" there was a hint of fear in his voice.

"Sure. Um…" she turned towards her sleeping roommate, "maybe I should come out there." She grabbed a black robe and her broomstick and then climbed out. Draco glided on his broom towards the lake, motioning for her to follow him. She did.

They landed in silence, putting down their brooms and sitting on a rock. Draco did not say anything right away, and Ginny thought it best to let him speak first. After a moment, he did.

"I had a dream just now," he waited for her reaction.

"Really? What happened?" she asked, a tone of concern in her voice.

"It was similar to the dream you described to me the other night. I saw some of the things that you saw. But… then I saw us. It was you, me and…"

"Who else?"

"Potter."

"What happened after that?" she asked.

"Nothing. It was nothing more than an image of the three of us, and then I woke up."

"I had the same dream right now. Only, I saw our faces. It wasn't us, Draco. It was three different people who looked like us, and yet looked so different," she explained.

"Then who was it?!" Draco was frustrated now. He held his head in his hands, trying to think.

"I don't know, Draco."

"Why did I have the same dream you did?"

"I don't know, Draco."

"Do you think… do you think Potter might have had this dream, too?"

"I don't know, Draco."

"Well ask him! You're his bloody friend! Ask him!"

"At three in the morning? What do you want me to do at three in the morning, Draco? I'm going back to bed!" She stood up.

"I'm sorry," his tone changed.

"What was that?" she turned and looked at him.

"I'm sorry for waking you up… and for getting angry at you… and-and for ever bothering you in the first place. Look, we're not supposed to get along, right? You're a Weasley, and I'm a Malfoy. Let's keep it that way." There was no sincerity in his voice at all, and Ginny knew that.

"Look, you were the one who wanted- needed- someone to talk to. So talk to _me_. I'll always listen, even if it is three in the morning," she said, sitting back down next to him.

Draco sighed and held his face in his hands. He felt ashamed of himself for some reason. He was tired, he was lonely, and he needed Ginny to be there. And now she would never leave him alone. He smiled. He buried his face deeper into his hands. He couldn't let her see him smile. He felt the weirdest feeling, sitting next to Ginny like this. He couldn't bear to look at her.

"Are you crying, Draco?" her soft voice soothed him.

"What? You think I'm crying? Malfoys don't cry." He looked at her and smirked, but there was a tear that fell down his cheek. Where did that tear come from? He didn't remember telling that tear to show up. It just did.

Ginny wiped the tear away. Draco felt the soft touch of her fingers on his cheek. She went to take her hand away, but Draco caught it and held onto it.

"I really am sorry, Ginny. But… I don't want you to go… ever. So please, just… forget what happened tonight. Forget the dream. Forget the fact that we're two very different people. I want you to look at me as a friend, not a foe," he said, letting go of her hand. Ginny did not answer him right away. She thought about it. Then she changed the subject.

"Look how clear the sky is! The stars are so beautiful!" This got Draco's attention. He looked up at the night sky and smiled at the sight.

"You're smiling," Ginny pointed out. Draco looked at her and frowned. The he laughed.

"I guess I am."

"Will you do that more often?" she asked.

"For you… sure."

"Good." Ginny was pleased. It would seem she had Draco in her grasp, and not the other way around. She liked the feeling.

"Don't get used to it, though. I'm not gonna smile in front of any of your little friends, okay?" he said. Ginny frowned. Maybe she didn't have him in her grasp. She nodded at him.

"Hey, look!" he pointed to the sky. Ginny looked up and saw a wonder.

"Is that-? It's a shooting star!" she said.

"Make a wish." He smiled at her.

"Okay." She closed her eyes.

"What are you wishing for?" Draco asked. She opened her eyes.

"It's a secret," she teased, "Now you have to make a wish."

"I already did."

"Did it come true?"

"We'll see."

Draco and Ginny stayed out all night, simply talking to each other. Ginny had fallen asleep in Draco's lap, and he picked her up and flew her back to her room. Just as he was getting back into bed, the sun rose. It was probably the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen, and although he didn't know it, Ginny was awake and watching the sunrise as well.

At breakfast that morning, Ginny sat with Harry, Hermione, and her brother. She spent most of the time staring at Harry, wondering if he'd had a dream like the one she and Draco had.

"Gin, aren't you hungry? You haven't touched your food!" She snapped back into reality and looked at Ron.

"Oh. Oh, no, I'm not very hungry this morning. You can have my pancakes if you want," she said.

"I don't want your pancakes, Ginny. I want to know what's wrong with you."

"There's nothing wrong," she said offhandedly.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"100 percent sure?"

"Oh, Ron, leave the girl alone! She probably just had a rough night!" Hermione argued.

"I'm sure she's fine, right Ginny?" Green eyes beamed at her. Ginny smiled back, trancelike, and- Oh god, what was she doing, staring at him that way? She shook her head.

"Actually, Harry, I wanted to ask you something," she said.

"What is it?"

"Can we step out of the room first? It's sort of private," she explained.

"Sure." They got up and walked out, while Ron and Hermione exchanged glances.

"What is it, Ginny?" He asked, concerned.

"Well, I want to know, and do be honest, if you've had any strange dreams or visions in the past few days," she said.

"I already took care of that last year, Ginny. Voldemort can't send me any more visions," he said.

"No, not those type of visions. I mean, well, have you had any dreams at all lately?" Harry hesitated.

"Yes."

"About what?"

"I'm not sure. But…" Ginny raised an eyebrow.

"Yes?"

"You were in the dream I had last night."

"What about Draco? Was he in it too?"

"Draco? No." Ginny frowned. Perhaps he wasn't having the same dreams she and Draco were having.

"Ginny… There's a Yule Ball coming up this Christmas. Would you like to go with me?" Confused by the sudden change of subject, Ginny too a while to register what he just said. (A/N: I'm not really keeping track of the date, but perhaps we'll say it's the end of November, and the Ball is before Christmas break)

"Oh!" She was shocked, but happy, "Of course!" Harry smiled,

"Good." He went back into the Great Hall. Ginny went to follow when a hand touched her shoulder lightly. She spun around.

"Draco."

"Ginevra."

"What's up?"

"The stars," he answered. Ginny grinned.

"Did you talk to Potter?" he asked.

"Oh. Yes I did. He didn't have the dream we had," she said. Draco sighed.

"I just don't understand it. Hey, maybe we can find some books about dreams and visions in the library," he suggested.

"Okay, good idea. We can go now before classes start. We have a good half hour."

They headed off for the library and searched for something- anything- that had to do with dreams or visions. Besides finding a load of crap about stuff that made no sense whatsoever, they found one book that looked interesting enough. Useful or not, they didn't know yet. The book had a red cover, with gold edges and an engraving of a scorpion on the front. There was no title, but there was something about the book that caught their attention. Ginny took the book out and brought it back to her dorm, and Draco went back to the Great Hall.

Ginny set the book down on her nightstand. She sat on the edge of her bed, eyeing the book. She wanted to open it, to devour it, but class was about to start. The bell rang. Ginny grabbed her copy of _the Phantom_ and set it on top of the red book. Then she headed down for her first class.

**I'm ending it here! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Just kidding. Well, the chapter ends here, so sorry to disappoint you all. Please please please review! I just got this good idea and wrote about it and it sounds good so far so please tell me what you think!!! I promise if I get at least 10 reviews for this chapter, I will update real soon!**

**To the faithful:**

**Aelys: Thanks, er, I guess I just said it again. I can't help it! Well, unless you want me to keep saying thanks over and over, I should say something else, right? Hm… whattosaywhattosaywhattosay… well, my brain hurts from thinking. But thank you for reviewing. It really makes my day.**

**Kerichi: Ah, somebody gets it! I'm glad you're a phantom fan! Have you seen the movie yet? It came out on Dec. 22 in the U.S. (er… are you even from the U.S??) But I just saw it last night and it was really really omigod really good. **

**The Fayt: thanks for the offer, but I think I'm okay with chem. for now. And if u like the idea of Ginny and Draco being a couple, just wait till u see what's coming.**

**BronzeToast: Why thank you. I don't hear about my stories being sweet and cute very often. It makes me feel special. . Teehee. (Ok I think I'm going crazy)**

**Missmee: LOL, well Draco will get what's coming for him. And I feel terrible for not updating sooner!**

**Beckysue2: you didn't freak me out. I honestly have no clue how old Harry potter fans are. And it's kind of weird that I was so young when the first book came out, and then by the time the 7th book comes out, I'll be in college! Then I'll have to push all the little kids out of the way to get my copy of the 7th book and they'll be like "you're an old lady! Why would u want to read Harry Potter?" …okay, so maybe it won't be like that. Anyway I'm glad you like my writing. Thanks.**

**A/N: So anyway, I encourage all of you to go out and see _Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera _playing in the States in select cities now! It was breathtaking. Gerard Butler plus the Music of the Night equals boxes and boxes of tissues! Heehee. **

**CIAO!**


	5. tis the season

**I'm not gonna even bother apologizing for this one… I mean, I just sort of lost interest in this story for a while. But I'm not going to stop writing it. I did have somewhat of an idea, and I will stick with it. **

**Chapter 5**

Draco stopped giving Ginny lessons for a while. Instead, they would sit by the lake and talk to each other. This went on for a good few weeks. On top of that, they hadn't had any strange dreams either. Ginny forgot about the red book after a while. She was simply too busy with school to read it. But she had finished reading the Phantom of the Opera, as did the rest of the Muggle Studies class.

Before anyone knew it, it was Christmastime- December 21st, the first day of winter, and two days before Christmas break. Hermione had agreed to go shopping with Ginny at a muggle store for a dress for the Ball. They found a brilliant red halter dress with ruffles that ended at the knees.

When they got back to Hogwarts, Ginny showed off her new attire to her roommate.

"I think it looks great, Ginny!"

"I know! It's perfect, isn't it?"

"It'll blow Harry away."

Harry. Ginny almost forgot about Harry. Of course, who did she think she was going to the Ball with? Harry Potter, the boy she'd had a crush on ever since- well, ever since she knew who he was. She looked at herself in the mirror. Gosh, she really did look great. The dress fit her figure well. She twirled around and admired herself for a few minutes, before changing into her regular clothes.

Ginny checked the clock; it was dinnertime. But before she left for dinner, she stole a glance out of the window; it was snowing violently. She smiled and sang a familiar tune as she made her way down to the Great Hall:

**Weasley is our Queen,**

**Weasley is our Queen,**

**She always gets the quaffle in;**

**Weasley is our Queen.**

When Ginny arrived at the Gryffindor table, she sat next to Harry, who smiled at her, but said nothing more.

"Um… so, the Yule Ball's tomorrow," she said nervously. Harry nodded.

"It is. Are you ready?"

"Yes, actually, Hermione and I picked out a nice dress and- oh, you'll have to wait and see." Harry and Ron exchanged glances, before putting some food onto their plates.

Ginny stole a glance over at the Slytherin table. Draco was talking with his friends, and seemed to be having a good time. He hadn't been talking to his friends that often until today. Ginny wanted to find out why there was a sudden change. She couldn't forget he was still Draco Malfoy, and he was still a Slytherin.

The sound of the headmaster clearing his throat echoed throughout the Great Hall. All eyes turned to the front of the room. Dumbledore was giving an announcement, or a speech, or rather saying something of importance to all of Hogwarts.

"As you all know, it is snowing at an unusual rate outside. Winter Break is in two days, and a lot of you are prepared to go home for the holidays. If it stops snowing soon, we can get all of you out of here safely, but if it continues to snow at this rate on Monday, we won't be able to hold off the snow with magic. We may be snowed in for the week," he exclaimed. Loud moans were heard across the room. "But do not worry! That's only if it keeps snowing so harshly! Hopefully it will clear up. Let's pray that it does. Now, enjoy your dinner," with that, Dumbledore sat down, and the students resumed eating.

Ginny's attention now returned to the large pile of food in front of her, and suddenly she was consumed with hunger. She devoured it all ravenously, licking the entire plate clean. She then realized how fast she had eaten, felt sick, and ran to the girl's bathroom.

_Ginevra Weasley, you are an idiot! What were you doing, eating your food so quickly? _Ginny stood in front of the sink, staring at her reflection in the mirror. With the expression she had, you'd think she was about to throw up. But she didn't. She felt really sick, and needed to lie down and sleep. And so that's just what she did.For the entire evening, until something startled and woke her.

It was pitch black. All Ginny could see when she sat up were her knees, bent in front of her. She couldn't tell what had woken her, exactly. It was sort of like a jolt through her entire body. She hugged her knees, shivering, and looked around her. When her eyes finally adjusted, she checked the bed next to hers. Her roommate was sound asleep. She checked the clock, which read 12:01 a.m. The one place else to look… The window was empty. Nobody peering into it, no Draco Malfoy tapping on it. Everything seemed so… peaceful. Ginny didn't have any strange dreams that night, had she? So why was she still waking up in the middle of the night? Those dreams hadn't come for a while. There had to be a reason…

Ginny got out of bed and pulled a long black robe over her clothes- which she hadn't taken off since that morning. She grabbed her broomstick. If Draco wasn't going to visit her, then she'd go visit him.

Ginny opened her window, only to have a burst of cold wind and snow erupt in her face. She immediately closed the window and, taking out her wand, put a charm on herself to keep the snow off. Then, opening the window again, she got on her broom and flew off.

The trip wasn't exactly short. Ginny hadn't gone from her room to Draco's before, but in order for Draco to have gotten to her room each night, he had to have flown all the way around the building.

When she got to the Slytherin Tower, Ginny wasn't sure which room belonged to Draco, so she flew to each window and peered in. The first window had a bunch of 3rd year girls sleeping in it. Another room had some 5th year guys. Finally, she found the 7th year guys, where Draco happened to be sleeping right near the window.

How could he be asleep? Ginny wondered this as she tapped on the window gently. Nothing happened. She tapped again, this time a little louder. Draco rolled over in his sleep. Finally, she took out her wand and used a spell to get the window open.

She was afraid to go inside. What if she got caught? Even though girls were allowed in the guys' dormitories… but it was after curfew, and…. What if she got suspended? She decided to take the risk. She climbed in and stood over Draco's bed. How would she wake him without disturbing the other boys? Ginny pondered over this for a few minutes, when someone startled her. Draco had woken up, and was amusedly watching her think to herself.

"You look confused," he said.

"Oh! Draco… how long have you, er, been awake?"

"Long enough. Now, what are you doing here?" he demanded.

"Um… I woke up in the middle of the night, and I looked out my window, and you weren't there. That's the first time that's ever happened. I didn't know what to do…"

"Eager to see me, are you?" He joked.

"No, of course not!" Ginny argued.

"Did you have another dream?" he asked.

"No…"

"Then what are you doing in my bedroom?" He raised a questioning brow. Ginny blushed.

"I, um, I don't know…" Ginny trailed off. Draco groaned, softly, but loud enough to hear.

"Come here, sit down," he ordered, pointing at his bed. Ginny was a little hesitant, but then decided she was too tired to stand, anyway. Draco stood up and examined her.

"Something's troubling you," he said. It was not a question, but a statement.

"That's not true!" She defended herself.

"Whatever," Draco shrugged, and took a seat next to her.

"So… why don't we go somewhere and talk? I don't want to wake your friends," Ginny eyed the two sleeping Slytherins. Draco groaned again, but then stood up and put on a robe to cover himself. Then he grabbed his broomstick and walked over towards the window.

When he opened the window, Ginny expected the snow to come in, but it didn't. In fact, it looked as if the blizzard had stopped. This put a smile on her face. They both got on their broomsticks and flew off.

Ginny headed for the quidditch post, deciding it would be good to practice for the next game, which would be in three weeks. But Draco headed for Hogwarts Hill instead.

"Draco?" Ginny called out, "where are you going?" He didn't answer her. He just kept flying. So she followed him.

He landed on top of the hill, and Ginny did the same.

"Draco, I thought maybe we could practice some quidditch…" she said.

"No quidditch today, Ginny," he said plainly.

"Why are we here, anyway?"

"Look." He motioned towards the sky, and Ginny looked up. The dark clouds were silhouetted against the bright, full moon, and the stars were sparkling in the sky.

"_Wow_," Ginny tried to say, but the beauty of the sky seemed to have taken her breath away.

"Come with me," he said, and taking her hands, led her towards a tree. And not just any tree, either.

The two of them stood underneath _Lover's Tree_.

Ginny was too busy staring at the sky to realize where it was Draco had taken her. When she finally looked around her, all she could see were branches surrounding them. It was then that she realized what Draco was doing.

Ginny shook her hands out of Draco's grasp. Suddenly, she felt very cold, and wrapped her arms around herself.

"You're shivering," he said.

"Yes, I know that," she said, "My body is cold."

Draco put his arms around her, the warmth of his body radiating onto her. She relaxed a little, still feeling somewhat awkward.

"Why are we here, under this tree?" she asked. Draco smiled at her, but kept silent.

"Draco, did you hear me?" she asked. Her teeth were chattering.

"Your teeth are chattering," He said.

"Yes, I know that," she replied, "My mouth is cold too." Then she realized she had said the wrong thing. For just then, Draco moved his face towards hers, and pressed his warm lips on top of hers.

Ginny's eyes flutterred closed, as Draco's tongue slid into her mouth. She just about melted in his arms. But she pulled back.

"Draco," she said.

"Ginny," he cupped his hand over her cheek. She pushed it away.

"Why are you doing this?" she asked.

"Don't tell me you didn't enjoy that," he responded.

"I didn't," she lied.

"You know I can tell whenever you're lying, right?" Draco asked.

"What? I wasn't lying, though," she said. Her lips were trembling.

"You keep doing that. Whenever you lie, your lip twitches like that," Draco said

"That's not true!"

"Yes, it is," he was grinning, seemingly pleased with himself.

"Draco, why did you kiss me?"

"I guess it was just a feeling I've had about you for a while. One that I couldn't hide from you forever, because when I saw you tonight," he moved in closer towards her, "I just knew that I wanted to kiss you so badly."

"It's not right," Ginny said.

"Of course it is. Why shouldn't it be?" He moved in even _closer_, so that their noses were touching.

"I don't know…"

"Is it because I'm a Slytherin?"

"No, of course not! That has nothing to do with it, Draco…"

"Good," he said. Then he put his arms around her and landed his lips on hers once again. This time, Ginny didn't pull back. She _did_ enjoy it when he kissed her. She felt a pang of ecstasy flowing through her the more he _touched_ her. And she didn't want it to stop.

"OW!" Draco suddenly pulled away from Ginny and grabbed at his wrist.

"Draco?" Ginny was concerned. Draco sunk to the ground, wailing in pain.

"GODDAMMIT! It's the middle of the night!" He screamed.

"What's going on, Draco?" Ginny asked. But Draco didn't look at her. He kept clutching his wrist.

Then Ginny noticed it. The red glow emanating from beneath his fingers. She shuddered.

"Wha-What is that on your wrist?" she wanted to know.

"It's nothing. I have to go," he said.

"NO!" Then she took a hold of Draco's hand and pulled it away from his other arm. One glance at his wrist and she knew immediately what was going on. She frowned.

"How could you?" She asked.

"Ginny, I'm sorry!"

"Why did you keep this from me?"

"I said I was sorry!"

"How long have you had this? And don't say you're sorry to me!" she demanded.

"Since… well, since two nights ago," he said. Then Ginny remembered yesterday when Draco was sitting with his friends and talking to them. Was that what they were talking about? Had they all become death eaters too?

"I can't believe you would go and do this!" Ginny said.

"Do what? It's just a tattoo. There's nothing to worry about."

"Just a tattoo! Draco, it's the dark mark! You're a death eater now! I can't believe I even trusted you to be my friend!"

"Ginny, I am your friend. Maybe more," he said, taking her hands. She pushed him away.

"No! Get away from me! Isn't your Lord calling you?"

"I won't go, Ginny. Not if you don't want me to," he said.

"Draco, I don't want you to serve _Him_! Why don't you do that for me?" she asked.

"I have to. My father made me do this," he explained.

"With your consent, I'm sure," she argued.

"I couldn't just say no!"

"So, you care about your Lord more than you care about me. Is that it?" She asked.

"Ginny, I thought you of all people would understand me. You're a very understanding person. Remember, 5 years ago? You were the one writing in a journal to the Dark Lord! You talked to him, and you understood his feelings!"

"I… that was different. He was planning to take my life, whether or not I had a affiliation with him," Ginny said.

"So that's it? You think I'm trying to kill you?"

"Maybe," Ginny said. Draco looked hurt. And his eyes! His beautiful baby blue eyes were filled with sorrow!

"I wouldn't let any harm come to you," he said, truthfully.

"But, you wouldn't give your life for me. If it was you and I in a life and death situation, you'd save yourself first," Ginny said. Draco didn't answer her. He was afraid she might be right. He was too self-centered.

"I swear to you I will _never_ let anybody hurt you," he said through gritted teeth.

"Do you?" Ginny asked.

"YES!"

"Even if it would risk your own life?"

Draco hesitated.

"Well?" Ginny folded her arms.

"Well, I can't promise you that. I… I don't know if I can put my own life at risk for somebody like you…"

"Somebody like me? What are you saying?"

"I… I have to go, Ginny," Draco stumbled backwards, "Today was a mistake." He turned his back on her and then left.

Ginny sat down underneath the tree, alone, and started to cry. How could she have trusted a traitor like him? How could she call him her friend? And why did she let him kiss her. Her mind lingered on his words for a while:

"_Don't tell me you didn't enjoy it."_

Because the thing was, Ginny _did_ enjoy it. She enjoyed every second of it. She just wished she could've found out his secret before he kissed her. But it was too late. It was the same thing5 years ago,with that deadly diary she wrote in. She had given her soul to evil once before, and she had just done it again. For Draco Malfoy, she decided, was _evil_.

**To everybody who mentioned it- yes, yes, the library book is important! Or, as they say in Mexico, importante. But it's meaning will not come in untillater. Much, much later. I believe this story will turn out tobe very long, but very good, if I ever remember to update it.**

**Aeyls- woah there, either u read my mind, or this story is too predictable! lol. Nah, actually, that was called foreshadowing. Hooray for foreshadowing:forgive me for being hyper:**

**BronzeToast-** **why thank you. You are a good person, and I am inspired. :)**

**Kerichi- Yes, Michael Crawford's voice makes me all jumpy, and therefore while I was writing the last chapter, I got all jumpy, and kept interrupting the story. I apologize. And that, my friend, is an example of a good excuse. But, oh, I am a bad, bad author. Forgive me. ;) also, the real Draco has blue eyes, as you might have noticed me mentioning it in this chapter.**

**missmee- yes, yes, again i am sorry. but at least tell me you liked this chapter. you did, didn't you?**

**bookluva629- i don't believe the red book has anything to do with the Phantom story itself, but it certainly is important to the characters, who, surprise, surprise, seem to have Phantom qualities to them.**

**TheFaytinPurple- Hope you did end up seeing that movie. It's always good to have a Phantom fan around.**

**-**

**-**

**Thanks once again, to everybody. **


	6. The aftermath

**This chapter is a lot shorter than I would have liked it to be. Bear with me please. I have been studying for finals for the past two weeks, and have had no time to concentrate on writing. Now that it's summer, hopefully I will. I'll try to update at least once a month, maybe sooner. No promises. Sorry. :(

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**Chapter 6 **

Ginny sat underneath the tree that Draco had just left. Her mind was so occupied with thoughts of what had just happened, that she didn't even notice that it had started to snow again. When she did realize it, she picked up her broomstick and flew back to her room, tears filling her eyes. As she got into her room, she tried to sleep for the rest of the night. But she could not fall asleep.

That morning, Ginny studied herself in the mirror. Her hair was a wreck and there were bags under her eyes. She frowned, and took out her hairbrush, beginning to brush her hair. Today there would be a Yule Ball at Hogwarts; a gathering of students who wanted to celebrate the season with their friends before they left for holiday. But it was more than just that to Ginny. She would be with Harry Potter, the guy of her dreams (literally), and the one guy who could make Draco jealous. Not that she wanted to make Draco jealous or anything… it was just bound to happen. Because Draco had kissed Ginny, and seeing her with his rival would just have to make him jealous, right?

"Are you okay, Ginny?" Ginny's roommate asked her.

"Yes, why wouldn't I be?" she asked abruptly.

"Well, for one thing, you've been brushing your hair for the past ten minutes. I don't think it needs any more brushing."

"Oh. I'm sorry. I was just thinking about something," Ginny responded, putting her brush down.

"Don't apologize to me. You're wasting your own time. The Yule Ball starts this afternoon. You don't want to miss it."

"Right. Has breakfast started yet?" she asked.

"It's been over for an hour, Ginny. It's 10 o'clock."

"Oh."

Ginny examined herself in the mirror once again. She quickly took out one of her outfits and put it on, not caring if it didn't match at all. Then she headed down to the common room.

The common room was so packed it would seem the entire Gryffindor House was in there. She spotted Harry and walked over towards him. He looked up and their eyes met. Ginny smiled brightly.

"Hi," she said.

"Hey," he returned her smile.

"So… why is everybody in here?" she asked.

"There's a blizzard outside. It started snowing again last night," he replied.

"Do you think it will clear up soon?"

"I don't know," Harry said. He paused for a while, staring at her, and then said with a look of concern, "you look tired."

"I was up all night," Ginny replied.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm fine. I've just… had a lot on my mind lately," she said. She pictured Draco's icy eyes gleaming at her and shuddered.

Harry rested his hand on Ginny's shoulder.

"You'll be fine. Nothing ever gets you down, Ginny," he said with a smile. What a beautiful smile! Draco never smiles, Ginny thought. She tried to smile back at Harry but found that she couldn't.

"Come on, cheer up," he said, "I know. Let's sneak down to the kitchens and get some ice cream from the house elves."

"Really? Are you sure about that?"

"Of course. Well, As long as Hermione doesn't see," he said.

"Okay," Ginny lit up.

"Well, it looks like I got you to smile!" Harry said. Ginny's face turned pink.

"I… let's go," she said, and headed off towards the kitchens. Harry followed her.

After getting her ice cream (double chocolate fudge crunch with whipped cream and a cherry on top), Ginny felt much better. She shoved a spoonful of the chocolatey goodness inside her mouth while Harry watched amusedly.

"Thank you Harry," she tried to say, but it sounded more like "Ankoo, Darry."

"Er… your welcome?" Harry said, a half-smile plastered on his face.

"What?" Ginny said.

"You look ridiculous," he said.

"Do I have chocolate on my face? Ugh…"

"Well, you have a little bit on the side of your mouth," he said. He wiped it off with his finger.

"Thanks," Ginny said. He smiled.

"You're welcome."

"So… I hope I can still fit into my red dress for the ball after eating this," Ginny said. Harry laughed.

"I wouldn't worry about that. You have a nice, slender figure," he said. It struck Ginny that Harry had even noticed her 'slender figure.' Her face turned deep red.

"Um… thanks," she said, "Harry, why are you being so… nice?" He smiled at this.

"Why do you seem so surprised? I'm your friend. I'm supposed to be nice. I… you deserve better treatment, Gin," He said calmly. Ginny smiled inwardly at the sound of her own little nickname he had picked out for her. 'Gin.' She looked up at him and saw the sincerity in his face.

"Well… thank you. I need a friend right about now," she said.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"Oh, no… I just… well," Ginny hesitated, "Yes. Somebody close to me, er… let me down. And right now I'd appreciate somebody to be there for me."

"Whenever you need me, Gin. You can talk to me about anything, you know," he said.

"Thanks." Ginny finished her ice cream they left the kitchen together, heading back to the common room.

Ginny and Harry passed Draco in the hallway, who scoffed at them. Ginny uncomfortably tried to look away; up, down, anywhere but at Draco. Harry noticed this.

"Don't let him bother you, Gin," he said comfortingly.

Ginny hesitated. "I… I can't help it. Lately he's been really nasty to me."

Harry put his arm around Ginny's shoulder. She seemed surprised at this, but Harry only smiled at her.

"It's okay. Just stay around me and I'll tell him off for you," he said. Ginny forced a smile back.

"You don't have to be so nice to me, Harry," she said.

"We already went over this. I want to be nice to you. You're my friend," he said. Ginny just looked at him in wonder. Do friends walk around with their arms around each other? Harry sensed Ginny's unease and removed his arm.

"Well, here we are," Ginny said, stumbling over to the portrait hole and mumbling the password. The fat lady just blinked at her.

"What was that, dear? Speak up a little," she said.

Ginny repeated herself, this time louder. The portrait swung open and Harry and Ginny stepped inside.

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**So that's it. You may complain about the length if you like, but the next chapterWILL be long. Until then, you can review.**

**And here is a little summary of chapter 7 to keep you interested:**

**Harry has been acting like more than a friend towards Ginny, it would seem. Why? That's not like Harry at all. At the Yule Ball, Ginny and Draco have another conflict, but not before what happens between her and Harry!**


	7. Yule Ball

**Hello, readers, reviewers and friends! I have just come back from a wonderful experience of seeing _the Phantom of the Opera_ with my friends for my 16th birthday. It was EXCELLENT! This was my second time seeing it, and I loved it and would definitely see it again if I had the money. Lol. The phantom (Hugh Panaro) did an excellent job- he's no Michael Crawford, but he has a great voice still. I disliked the guy who played Raoul, but then again, I always disliked that character. Christine was excellent as well. Meg's voice was annoying, I must say. The rest were great: Mdme Giry, Mssr Andre, Mssr Firmin, La Carlotta, Ubaldo Piangi, Joseph Buquet, etc. Again, I absolutely LOVED IT.**

**On that note, I shall leave you all with Chapter 7

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"Spin around." Ginny blinked at Ron, and nodded, spinning around. Her red dress spun with her, and she looked fantastic.

"It's absolutely gorgey!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Thanks," Ginny said.

"I agree," said Harry. He folded his arms and stared at her with delight. She blushed.

"Well, let's go. We're already late," she said.

"Don't worry, Ginny. We'll be fashionably late. We'll make our entrance with such grace, everybody will be astounded," Hermione said.

"Hermione, where on earth did you read that? I don't think anybody will care whether or not we're late," Ron said.

"Oh, shut up, Ron. What do you know?"

"Let's go already!" Ginny said, annoyed.

"Sorry," Ron said. _What's gotten into her?_

Harry took Ginny's hand in his and they made their way to the Great Hall.

When they entered, they saw that all four houses were separated. Ginny's eyes fell immediately on the Slytherins.

Draco seemed to be having a boring time. He looked up and, spotting Ginny, grinned. Then he walked over towards Pansy Parkinson, grabbed her, and started snogging her. She giggled and snogged him back, making a scene. Ginny frowned.

"You okay, Gin?" Harry asked.

"I'm fine. It's just that Malfoy _really_ disgusts me," she said.

"Well," he said, "it helps if you _don't look_." He placed his hand on her chin and turned her head towards him.

"Let's dance, shall we?"

"Okay," Ginny said, "Only, I don't really know how to…" He grinned.

"It's not that hard. Just take my hand, like _this_, and put your other hand here, like _this_," He instructed, "and now just follow my lead."

They began to dance, diverting everyone's attention form Draco and Pansy to Ginny and Harry. A Hufflepuff couple joined them on the dance floor. Then Draco and Pansy stepped in, too.

Ginny had her eyes fixed on Harry. He was so graceful, so… charming. This was certainly a side to him that she'd never seen before.

"You look beautiful. By the way," he complimented her. She blushed.

"Thanks. You look great, too."

She rested her head on Harry's shoulder. All was going well.

For a second, she looked away… Draco's ice cold eyes were staring back at her. It was scary, and she didn't want him to let him know she was scared of him. But she felt as if he could see right through her, as if he could _read her mind_…

She turned away. Harry sensed Ginny's unease.

"Are you okay?" he asked. She ignored him. She wanted to look away, but it seemed everywhere she turned, there Draco was. So she looked up at Harry.

"I'm fine," she said.

Harry looked at her, then at Draco, and then back at her.

"Is Malfoy bothering you?" he asked.

"What? Of course not," she replied.

"He is, isn't he? We can go somewhere else if you'd like," he said. She sighed.

"Okay," she said. Harry took her hand and led her into the hallway.

"So tell me. What did Malfoy do?" he asked her. Ginny's eyes wandered.

"He didn't do anything…"

"Look at me and say it, Ginny!" Harry said. She looked at him.

"Okay," she said, her lip trembling, "he didn't do anything."

"You're lying," he said.

"You think I'd lie to you? I can't believe it!" she said.

"I'm sorry, Ginny. Here, come with me," he said, pulling her by the hands.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

"You'll see," he said. He brought her to the dungeons.

"Harry, what are we doing in the dungeons?" she asked.

"We're going to take a little test," he said.

"What do you mean? Harry!"

"Hold on," he said. He went into one of the rooms and brought back a small flask.

"Here," he said, handing it to Ginny, "take one sip of this."

"What is it?" she asked.

"Take a wild guess," he said.

"It's not… _veritaserum_, is it?" He nodded

"I don't know… What are you going to ask me?" she inquired.

"What it is that's bothering you," he replied.

"There are a lot of things bothering me right now, Harry. One of them is that you don't trust me," she said.

"Then drink the potion and I'll have no reason not to trust you, right?"

"Okay... fine," she said, taking a sip. After a moment, she said, "I don't feel anything."

"You're not supposed to. Don't worry, the potion is working. Now… tell me, do I look good in tie?" he asked.

"Yes… Harry! Why would you ask something like that?" He laughed.

"That was just a test. Well, that and I wanted your honest opinion," he said.

"…Okay."

"Now… what happened with Malfoy that's bothering you so much?" he asked.

"Harry! Oh damn… He- He was giving me quidditch lessons when the season began, and then we got to know each other a little better… and we became friends…. And then- Dammit! - he kissed me, and I-I kissed him back… but then I found out that he was…he was a de-deatheater!" She spat out. Harry was speechless.

"I- wow! -I had no idea! I don't know what to say. You… kissed him?"

"Yes."

"How do you feel about him now?"

"He's not a good person… and he has this advantage over me... _I'm scared of him, Harry_!" Ginny found herself admitting. She started to cry. Embarrassed and ashamed, she hid her face in her hands. Harry hugged her.

"It's okay," he said, "and I'm sorry. I didn't realize what was going on. I was too busy worrying about myself…. I had no idea Draco's been tormenting you. But it's okay, you don't have to be scared."

"I just don't want to go back up there!"

"Why not? He can't hurt you."

"I know, but…I just don't want to face him," she sobbed.

"Shh…" Harry said as he held Ginny close.

_No more talk of darkness,_

_Forget these wide-eyed fears;_

_I'm here, with you, beside you,_

_To guard you and to guide you._

_Let me be your shelter,_

_Let me be your light;_

_You're safe, no one will find you,_

_Your fears are far behind you._

_Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime;_

_Let me lead you from your solitude._

_Say you want me with you, here beside you,_

_Anywhere you go, let me go too,_

_That's all I ask of you._

_Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime._

_Say the word and I will follow you._

_Share each day with me, each night, each morning._

_Say you love me,_

_That's all I ask of you._

"I'm here for you, Ginny," he said, holding her close.

"Thank you," she whispered, hugging him back.

Behind a desk in that same room was a spying Draco Malfoy, wearing an invisibility cloak. He had gotten there without their knowing of it, and he had seen and heard the entire thing.

_I made your song take wing._

_And now, how you repay me, _

_Deny me and betray me…_

They hugged once more, this time more passionate than the last.

Harry kissed Ginny's hand and got up, pulling her up with him.

_You will curse the day you did not do…_

_All that the phantom asked of you!_

Draco held the cloak tight around himself, got up, and left back for the Great Hall, infuriated. Ginny had given away their secret, and she had promised not to.

"We should go back. Hemione and Ron will wonder where we've gotten off to," Harry said.

"Okay," Ginny said. Harry now knew her and Draco's secret. He knew that they had kissed, and he knew that Draco was a deatheater.

They went back to the Great Hall together, holding hands as they went. Somehow, with Harry right beside her, Ginny didn't feel so scared of Draco. She felt… warmth and safety. It was something very different, and unexplainable. Something that she definitely did not feel with Draco.

The two began to dance again, and Ginny rested her head on Harry's shoulder. She looked down at their synchronized feet, moving to the rythym of the music that was playing. He gently lifted his hand onto her head and stroked her hair. She smiled, and looked up at him. Then he placed his hand on her cheek, pulled her face towards him, and kissed her! Ginny seemed to go along with it, as if she was waiting for it to happen all night. She pulled back, and looked at Harry, but then she froze. Looking past Harry, she saw Draco standing there. She'd forgotten about him, and he had seen the entire thing! He was smirking, as if he'd been waiting for that to happen too. Why! He looked so sinister, standing there with his mischievous grin.

"Well done, Weasley; you've finally gotten a kiss from your precious _prince charming_," he said, "but it wasn't as good as my kisses, I'm sure." He smirked.

"Shut up, Malfoy," Harry remarked, holding Ginny tight like she was his most precious possession.

"What's wrong, Potter? Are you offended? You're not the only one who's been with Ginny, so deal with it! She's never going to forget about me, and I won't let her," he said.

"You are nothing to Ginny anymore, Malfoy! She hates you!" Harry said.

"I'm nothing to her? You can keep telling yourself that, Potter, but it will never be true. I will always be something to Ginny, and like I said, I'll make sure she doesn't forget it."

"You're sick, Malfoy," Harry spat, "Get out of here."

"What?" Draco was taken aback.

"You heard me. I said _get out_," Harry repeated himself.

Draco just stared at Harry and muttered two words: "Make me."

Harry had let go of Ginny at this point and walked up to Malfoy with his wand at his side. Malfoy grabbed his own wand. Ginny couldn't take it any longer. She had to do something.

Just as the two wizards were about to fight, Ginny stood in between them.

"Stop it, both of you! You're acting like a bunch of fools! Harry, I'm sorry to put you through this. This is all my fault. And Draco…" she looked at Draco, suddenly not afraid anymore, and said, "Leave me alone."

Both Draco and Harry were shocked at this.

"Ginny, it's not your fault… Draco just needs to learn to keep his mouth shut," Harry said.

"It is her fault! She made me feel this way about her!" Draco shouted, upset.

"What are you talking about, Draco? You don't care about me! You're a bastard and you will never be anything higher that that!" Ginny screamed at him with her newfound confidence.

Draco looked hurt. He stumbled backwards, not taking his eyes off of Ginny, and went ballisitic.

"You know what, Weasley? Fuck you! I don't need you! You just wait and see! One of these days you'll realize how bad you want me," he said. And then he left.

Ginny broke down and started to cry. Harry held her in his arms and tried to comfort her, but it was no use. She'd never been through so much abuse in her life since she opened Tom Riddle's diary.

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**Well that's it. How do you think it turned out? What do you think should happen in chapter 8? Tell me, and I just might write about it! Or I might write the opposite… who knows?**

**Oh, and please don't complain that I don't update enough. I already know that I don't update enough, and I'm trying. I updated pretty quickly this time, though, didn't I? **


	8. The red book

**WARNING: This chapter is going to get confusing! But read now, complain later!

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**

**Chapter 8 **

The next week, Christmas vacation, turned out to be a disaster. The force of the blizzard was becoming so strong; there was no escaping the snowbound Hogwarts Castle. Ginny wished she could just go home and see her family again. Charlie and Bill would be home; so would Fred and George. But she and Ron were stuck with the rest of Hogwarts, hoping the snow would clear up.

"Cheer up, Gin," Harry had told her on Christmas Eve. They were sitting by the warmth of the fire in the Gryffindor common room. He held her left hand, entwining his fingers with hers. She let out a weak smile. She was too terribly upset, however, and she could not bring herself to fully smile for Harry. Yet it was not the poor weather that saddened her. Far from it, in fact. It was Draco that had her so depressed.

Ginny sighed and rested her head on Harry's shoulder. He looked at her with a funny sort of expression on his face.

"What?" she asked, "Do I have something on my face?" He laughed and shook his head at her.

"No, you don't. It's just that, well, I had a weird dream last night," he explained.

"Oh?" said Ginny, lifting her head up, "about what?"

"Well, that's the thing… it was sort of a fuzzy dream. It all seemed so clear at one point, and then it was as if I'm not really seeing what I think I'm seeing," he said.

"Well, that's the funny thing with dreams," Ginny said, "So... what exactly did you _think_ you were seeing?"

"Well, you. And me. And I also thought I saw…"

"Malfoy?" Ginny finished his sentence.

"Yes! How did you…?"

"I had the same dream a while ago," Ginny said.

"What does it mean?" Harry asked.

"I don't know. But when you had the dream, could you see our faces?" she asked.

"No. They were blurry, now that I think of it," Harry said.

"It was the same with me at first. But then I kept having the same dream. And the faces kept getting clearer and clearer. And it wasn't us," Ginny explained.

"It wasn't?"

"No. I mean, it looked a lot like us, but… there was something terribly wrong with the picture. It was like a distorted painting of us," she said.

"…Weird. Oh! Now I remember seeing some strange images. Like some people I knew. And a scorpion or something. Oh! And I remember seeing a cauldron, too. But these images were clearer. And I recall hearing a faint music playing in the background. A violin or something…"

"Yeah," Ginny said, "I remember that too."

"I have to find out what it means!" Harry said. Ginny nodded, and then remembered the red book she had. She stood up, letting go of Harry's hand, and said, "I'll be right back," before heading for her room.

She found the book lying in the same spot it had been before, and she picked it up. It had collected dust, so she brushed it off, and then opened it.

The inside cover was labeled:

**DREAM INTERPRETATIONS and**

**DIVINE SPELLS THAT CAUSE NOCTURNAL DISTURBANCES**

Draco had picked it out; he must've known it would be useful, right? Ginny hadn't looked at it yet… but something about the book was calling out to her to turn the page.

The next page had a table of contents.

_Page 2… PEACEFUL DREAMS_

_Page 7… NIGHTMARES_

_Page 13… ENIGMATIC DREAMS_

The rest did not concern Ginny. She turned to page thirteen and began to read:

_Most dreams are enigmatic; however, these can be made clearer in two ways: one may enter another's enigmatic dream to try and decipher it, or one may look up spells which might be causing their enigmatic dreams. On the next page is a spell on how to enter into another's dream. _

Ginny skipped over that page, making a mental note to come back to it later.

_If you do not wish to have someone enter into your dream, you may be considering the possibility that your dream is being caused by some enchantment. On the next page is a list of spells that cause enigmatic dreams._

Ginny looked on at the next page and read the list. There were things on how to curse an enemy so that they'll dream of clowns, and their was a counter curse for this. There were thing like how to stop having dreams about crying babies and mooing cows and boiling cauldrons and tapping shoes. Nothing related to Ginny's strange dream of the distorted people and the music and the images that she saw.

But then something caught Ginny's sight:

_If you and someone you know are having the same dream, it is possible a curse has been put upon you without your knowing. A curse that in fact involves something the two (or more) of you may have to do. If you are having repeating dreams, then this is almost definitely a curse. _

_One curse like this has to do with something strange or bad that happened already; for example, if something dreadful happened to two or more people, a curse may be put on two or more other people so that the same thing is bound to happen to them. If this is the case, then there is no counte-rcurse, and you must sit back and let it happen, like a storybook whose ending cannot change. _

The word _storybook_ reminded Ginny of something… The Phantom of the Opera! What if someone had put a curse on her, Draco, and Harry so that they'd end up like the main characters in The Phantom of the Opera? If that was the case, would the ending be the same? Would Ginny end up with Harry for sure? For certainly, Harry was the good guy, and Draco was the Phantom. It had to be so!

But Ginny could not be sure that this was the case. For one thing, who on earth would put such a curse on them? And why choose the Phantom of the Opera as a base? She read on, determined to find the answer in that book.

_The person who put this curse on you must be one of the persons who that something dreadful had happened to._

The curse couldn't be caused by a fictional character, so that either meant that the book's curse was different from Ginny's curse, or Ginny's curse had nothing to do with the Phantom of the Opera. And, supposing the latter was the case, somebody wanted Ginny, Harry, and Draco to suffer in the same way they did.

_If you find, before it's too late, that you are under such a curse, you can control it; you can change the ending._

_Change the ending_. If Draco knew this, he'd know he didn't have to pursue Ginny, and they could both go their separate ways. But then again… if the curse had nothing to do with the Phantom, then what exactly would that ending be? Ginny needed to know who'd been through the same situation the three of them were now in.

Maybe those three people that they saw were, in fact, those people who'd put the curse on them! Maybe that's why their faces were distorted. Or, what if they weren't distorted… but they actually did look like that after all? But… who looks so much like Harry and Draco? And who was that green-eyed girl with Ginny's gorgeous red locks?

"Harry!" Ginny ran back down to the common room and shoved the overdue library book under his nose. He looked at the passage Ginny showed him.

"Well, I don't know if we're under a curse, but…"

"Malfoy's had the same dreams too," Ginny said rather reluctantly. She was hoping she didn't have to tell Harry about that.

"What?"

"I think this curse business has to do with all three of us," Ginny said.

"But who would put a curse on us like this?"

"I don't know," she said, "but I'm going to go find Malfoy."

"What? Ginny, you can't!" Harry pleaded.

"Harry, he's just as confused as we are. I think he has a right to know why he's been having such strange dreams," Ginny said.

"I'm coming with you," he said, making up his mind.

"No, Harry, stay here!" Ginny said. Harry glared at her, shaking his head. "Harry!"

"Fine, then I won't go!" Ginny said. And then she headed towards the girl's dormitories.

"Ginny!" Harry called after her, but she ignored him.

When Ginny looked out her window, she noticed a figure outside in the blizzard, on a broomstick, flying around in the quidditch pitch. Draco. She grabbed her broom and a heavy cloak, and then flew out of her window towards the pitch.

It was even colder than it looked, and Ginny had to use a charm to keep the snow out of her face. She flew towards Draco, who was flying around the goal posts. He stopped short when he saw her coming towards him.

"What do you want?" He yelled, both because he was angry and because it was hard to hear in the blizzard. The wind was violently blowing against his face, and his hair was covered in snow, making it look even lighter in color. His eyes were narrowed, most likely squinting at her because he could not see very well.

Ginny flew up next to him. She was not scared as she had been at the Yule Ball, even though Harry was not with her. When she looked at Draco now, she saw a man, not a monster. She saw somebody who needed compassion. So she would be kind to him. For now.

"I thought you might like to know more about those dreams," she said.

"I'm listening, go on," he said.

"Well, wouldn't you like to go inside first for a nice warm cup of cocoa?" she asked.

"Does it look like I want to go inside for a nice warm cup of cocoa?" he scowled.

"Well, yes. I mean, seeing how cold you look," she said. Draco did not find this amusing at all.

"Just tell me about the bloody dreams!" he said.

"No! Not until you get your big head inside for a cup of cocoa with me!" she shouted at him.

"Why? Why do you want to spend time with me all of a sudden? It looked like you wanted nothing to do with me at the Yule Ball," he said.

"Look, Draco, I'm not staying out here in a freaking blizzard just to tell you about the dreams!" she said.

"Oh. In that case, fine. I'll go inside with you," he said.

They went inside and snuck down to the kitchens, where one of the house elves gladly served them some hot cocoa.

"Now, remember, the only reason we're sitting together like this is because of the dreams," Draco said. Ginny nodded.

"I, um, I looked at that book we found," she said. Draco nodded.

"I thought it had something to do with dreams," he said.

"It did. It does, I mean. Well, I think, um, that we're under a curse," she said, explaining everything to Draco about what the book said.

"That's absurd! Who'd put such a curse on us?" he asked.

"I don't know, but… Harry had the same dream, just last night," she said.

"Potter? I see. Now your lover's in on it, too. Well, then, I hope you two can figure it out by yourselves, because I'm not interested anymore," he said, getting up.

"Draco, wait! You have to help us figure it out! Then, maybe we could change the ending, whatever it is. Otherwise, something dreadful may happen to us!" she said.

"Like what? If we're truly cursed, then let it happen, whatever it is!"

"What if someone dies?" Ginny asked.

"Then let's hope it's Potter and not me," Draco said.

"You don't care at all? Draco, I think those three people we saw in our dreams were the people who put a curse on us!" Ginny said.

"But they look like us," Draco said.

"I know. I think maybe… maybe they're supposed to look like us. Like, they're related to us, or something…"

"My father," Draco said plainly.

"What?"

"The one who looked like me. He had my father's eyes," Draco said.

"Of course! It was your father! But that must mean Harry and I are… Harry's parents! Something must have happened between Harry's parents and your father!" Ginny exclaimed.

"That's crazy!" Draco spat, "but… it may actually be the truth. In fact, I don't doubt something did happen between my father and Potter's parents that we don't know about."

"But which one of them put a curse on us?" Ginny asked.

"Well, seeing as Potter's parents are dead…"

"Oh. Then talk to your father! You have to!" Ginny said. Draco hesitated.

"Alright. I'll write him an owl or something. Now, you go back to Potter and tell him I've got this whole thing taken care of, and then you can leave me alone," he said.

"Good," said Ginny. She finished off her cocoa and went back to tell Harry what they figured out. She was content now, and she had nothing to worry about and no reason to be scared of Draco. In fact, it almost upset her that he'd told her to leave him alone… almost…

**Yes, this chapter makes no sense whatsoever. Can you please let me know if you understood it a little bit? Because it's sort of relevant to the plot.**

**I have a feeling one of you may complain about the Draco/Ginny action here, that it's not going so well, or going the way you'd like to see it go. Well, that's because this chapter was difficult enough to write. In further chapters, the Draco/Ginny action will get a lot better, so don't fret! **


	9. Have you forgotten your angel?

**I had a pattern. I'd update one story, then update the other, then update the first story, then update the other. I broke that pattern. I updated one story twice in a row. I feel terrible. :(**

**Hehe. Silly me, letting that bother me. You know, I don't know why I told you guys that. I guess I'm just bored.**

**And now, on with the long-awaited-**

**Chapter 9 **

Throughout Christmas break, Harry, Ginny, and Draco kept having the same dreams. By the last day of Christmas break, the blizzard had died down. Draco was sitting in his room with a parchment and quill, deciding what to write to his father. Finally, he made up his mind, and wrote down:

_Dear Father, _

_I have reason to suspect that I am under some sort of curse. If you know anything about it, please write back._

_Love, your son_

He read it over a few times before folding the parchment, and tying it to his owl's leg with a black ribbon. He sent the owl off, and then sat down on his bed. He looked reflectively at his window, smirking to himself, remembering that night when Ginny had crawled in through it to talk to him.

The last time they talked, he had told her to leave him alone. But he wanted to talk to her again so badly. He couldn't imagine what she was doing right now… probably snogging Potter. The thought nauseated him.

He looked back at his window and saw something- someone was flying around outside on their broom. A girl.

"You've got to be kidding me," Draco said. He grabbed his broom and opened his window. Then he flew outside and followed Ginny. She was not too far away, so he caught up to her in no time.

"Oy, Weasley!" he said. Ginny turned around and smiled at him.

"Hello, Malfoy. Out for a fly?" she said.

"Um… yeah. What are you doing out here?" he asked.

"Same thing, of course. You know how much I love to fly," she said.

"Really? I almost forgot, I guess." He looked at her, hovering gracefully in the air. She was too beautiful. Before Draco realized how long he was staring at her, she said,

"See something you like, Draco?" He smirked at this.

"I see something I like very much. Something I want." He couldn't stop himself from saying it. Ginny blushed, but kept smiling.

"Well, that's something you'll have to work at. Because I don't belong to anybody right now," she said.

"What about Potter?"

"Well, he doesn't act like he owns me."

"Let's go inside," Draco changed the subject, feeling a little uncomfortable.

"Okay," she said, "Where?"

"My room," he said.

"Sure."

"That was a joke, Ginny," he said, smirking.

"I know." She grinned.

"Um… well, let's at least put our brooms away first," he said. She nodded.

Draco escorted Ginny to her room, where she left her broom, and she hopped on the back of his broom. Then they flew to Draco's room.

"Sure you don't want to come in?" he said.

"It's not like I haven't been in there before," she said smartly.

"Huh. Well… I have to put my broom away, so…"

"Oh. Right." They climbed inside the window to Draco's room, where he put his broom away in a closet. He turned back to Ginny, who was sitting patiently on his bed.

"Well, it looks like I have you where I want you," he said. She giggled.

"Do you?" He nodded.

"Ginny…" he sat down next to her now, looking serious, "why did we stop doing this?"

"Doing what?"

"You know. Flying together, and talking to each other…"

"You know, Draco, I can't even remember. No, I do remember, but… I can't see what's so bad about it. You're not evil, Draco. I once believed that you were." Draco smirked.

"How do you know I'm not evil?" he asked.

"Because… you care about me," she said.

"True." He lifted up a hand and cupped her cheek, looking longingly at her.

"Draco…"

"Shh," he quieted her. He went in to kiss her, but she pulled back.

"No," she said.

"What? Ginny… I'm crazy about you… I can't help it. I can't stand to see you with _him… _with Potter." Ginny tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before looking into Draco's eyes. He was looking directly at her, as if he would lose her if he were to look away for just a second.

"Draco, I'm sorry. I can't feel the same way about you…"

"Shut up!" He said, grabbing her arms and violently pulling her into a passionate kiss. Their embrace seemed to last for a long time, before he pulled away from her.

"Don't tell me that didn't mean anything to you!" he said.

"It didn't," she said. But her bottom lip was quivering.

"Liar," he said, laughing. He pulled her into another embrace and whispered in her ear:

"No matter what may happen as a result of that curse… I will _never_ let Potter have you."

Ginny pulled away and stared at him, not sure what to say.

"Draco… I… I need to go," she said, getting up. He looked at her, making up his mind.

"Very well. I'll accompany you downstairs. It's not safe for a little girl to be alone in Slytherin territory," he said.

"Right."

He took her downstairs where they exited the Slytherin common room.

"I will see you later," he said to her. She walked away without saying a word.

Ginny was worried about what Draco might do, more than she was worried about the curse. She walked back to the Gryffindor common room where she found Harry, Hermione and Ron. Harry smiled when he saw her.

"Hey, Ginny," Hermione greeted. Ron waved at her.

"Hi guys. Do you mind if I talk to Harry for a bit?" They shook their heads and got up, leaving the two alone to talk. Ginny sat down next to Harry and snuggled up to him. He put his arm around her.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I was just talking to Draco," she said quietly.

"Why?"

"Because he needs someone to talk to," she said, closing her eyes and resting her head on his chest. He stroked her hair gently and looked at her lovingly.

"Well, I guess it's alright. Is that all you wanted to talk about?" he asked. She nodded.

"Well, that and I just wanted to spend time with you alone," she said. He smiled and hugged her. She opened her eyes and looked at him adoringly. He was her prince charming. He was her "Raoul."

The next day at breakfast, Draco sat at the Slytherin table with his "friends," ignoring them altogether. He was staring at Ginny, who was sitting next to Harry. Harry had his arm around her.

"Draco!" Draco turned his head at the sound of his name. It was Pansy Parkinson calling him.

"What is it?" he said, annoyed.

"What was that Weasley girl doing in the common room yesterday?" Pansy asked.

"Leaving," Draco said.

"But she was coming from the boys' dormitories! Who let her in there?"

"I did, alright? Now please drop it," he said.

"Draco! How dare you let a Gryffindor in!" she said accusingly.

"You're just jealous that I never let you in my room, Parkinson," he said. Pansy turned red.

"That is not true!" she shouted. Just then, the owls came. Draco got a letter adressed to him from his father. He opened it and looked it over, before getting up and walking over towards the Gryffindor table.

Ginny looked up at Draco. She smiled politely. Draco did not smile back.

"I got a letter back from my father," he said.

"What does it say?" she asked.

"He doesn't know anythig about a curse."

"Let me see," said Harry.

"No," Draco said.

"Draco, give Harry the letter," Ginny said. He hesitated.

"Alright." He handed the letter to Harry. Harry looked at it and read:

"_Draco, I know nothing about the curse._ This says 'the' curse, not 'a' curse. What did you write to him?"

"I told him I was under a curse and he should write back if he knows anything about it," said Draco.

"He wrote back, didn't he? He must know something about it, then," said Harry.

"Are you insane, Potter? He said he doesn't know anything!"

"He doesn't know anything about the curse. But he knows that there is a curse. Maybe he put a curse on us, but he doesn't know anything about it's terms," said Harry.

"I don't believe that," said Draco.

"Draco, how can you be sure? Write back to him, please!" Ginny pleaded. Draco sighed.

"Alright, I'll write back!" he said. He snatched the letter back from Harry and retreated to the Slytherin table.

* * *

_**That's it for chapter 9. Hope you enjoyed the Draco/Ginny parts. Hehe. Although this chapter was a tad short, I enjoyed writing it and the way it came out. Next chapter we meet Lucius! Hooray! Malfoys are sexy. Except for Narcissa. LOL. XP**_


	10. The angel's father

"_Wandering child, so lost, so helpless, yearning for my guidance."_

"_Angel or Phantom, friend or father? Who is it there, staring?"_

"_Have you forgotten your angel?"_

"_Angel, oh speak! What endless longings echo in this whisper?"_

"_Too long you've wandered in shadow, far from my fatherly gaze,"_

"_Wildly my mind beats against you…"_

"…_You resist…"_

"_But the soul obeys! Angel of music, I denied you, turning from true beauty! Angel of music, do not shun me! Come to me, strange angel!"_

"_I am your angel of music! Come to me, angel of music!"_

**I had to put that in there! Sorry! Lol. I wrote that all from memory. I think I've almost memorized the entire play. I'm such a freak, lol. Incase some of you were wondering, that was from the graveyard scene, right after Christine sings '_Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again._' **

**And now, on with the story!

* * *

**

**Chapter 10**

_Father, _

_If there is a curse, then please tell me what happened!_

_-Draco_

It had been two days since Draco sent out that letter to his father. He had sent no reply as of yet. It was Thursday morning, and Draco was sitting down at the Slytherin table at breakfast, trying his hardest not to look at Ginny and Harry at the Gryffindor table. He was waiting, rather impatiently, for the owls to come.

Finally, Draco heard a fluttering of many wings, and he looked up to see owls flying in with letters and newspapers for the students. Draco recognized his owl and smiled to himself hopefully. The owl dropped an off-white colored envelope into his hands.

Draco turned the envelope around and was pleased to see the seal of the Malfoy family; a blood red skull, holding the envelope shut. He gently tore the envelope open, and took out the parchment inside. He recognized his father's handwriting at once.

_Draco,_

_I cannot tell you anything now. But do not get discouraged. I understand your school has a trip to Hogsmeade this weekend. I will meet you Friday at 7 o' clock sharp at the Hog's Head. This meeting _must_ be in private!_

_-Lucius D. Malfoy_

Draco smirked at the formality of his father. He couldn't even write, 'love, your father.' And he had to meet him in person to discuss this… it was so asinine.

Draco did not feel like getting up to go to the Gryffindor table just to tell Ginny that he'd gotten a response. Especially not since Potter was there. He waited until that afternoon, when they had Muggle Studies together.

When Draco entered the classroom, Hermione and Ginny were chatting about something. Annoyed, he walked over to them.

"I need to talk to Ginny alone, _Granger_," he said.

"Well you'll have to wait, _Malfoy_," Hermione responded.

"Oh, come on! This is more important than anything you have to say, mudblood! Why are you even taking Muggle Studies? You know everything you need to about muggles!"

"Some people like to learn all they can," Hermione said, sighing, "Besides, this is the only class where you get to read and learn about muggle literature."

"Hermione," Ginny said, "Um… if you don't mind, could Draco and I just have a moment?" Hermione looked questioningly at Ginny. Then she nodded.

"Okay." She walked over to her desk and sat down, leaving Draco and Ginny alone.

"I got another letter," said Draco, "and I think you and Potter were right."

"I knew it! What did your father say?"

"He said to meet him privately at 7 in the Hog's Head on Friday," he explained.

"Okay. Then I guess we'll find things out Friday. See you, Draco," she said before turning around to go to her seat.

"Ginny, I wasn't finished talking…" Draco went to go after her, but Professor Flagg entered the room and class had already begun…

* * *

Draco never got the chance to talk to Ginny until Friday. He went to Hogsmeade Friday evening by himself. He got to the Hog's Head early, and saw Ginny standing outside, as if waiting for him. 

"Ginny, what are you doing here?" he asked.

"I want answers, Draco!" she said.

"And? My father told me to meet him in private, so you can't be here. Now go!"

"Draco, please. I'm a victim of this curse more than you are. So I want to know everything about it," she said.

"And I promise you that I will tell you all I know. But until then, I need you to leave."

"…Fine. Goodbye, Draco," she said, turning on her heel and walking away.

"Goodbye," Draco sighed. He entered the Hog's Head and looked around. It was a dingy looking place, and the tables looked as if they'd been unoccupied for a while. One table was occupied by a man in dark robes, wearing a hood to cover his face. Then again, it could have been a woman. The bartender studied Draco before greeting him.

"Welcome to the Hog's Head," he said grimly. Draco acknowledged the man with a wave of his hand and made to sit down at a table, when the hooded figure stood up.

"Are you alone, then?" It asked in a male's raspy voice.

"Erm, y-yes," said Draco. The man removed his hood to reveal a pair of silver eyes, and long, white-blond hair.

"Father!" Draco ran towards Lucius with a smile on his face.

"Shh! Sit down," Lucius ordered. Draco obeyed and sat down quietly at the table. Lucius took a seat next to him and stared at his son, deep in thought.

"Well," he said after a moment, "how have you been doing, son?"

"Rotten." Draco said glumly.

"Is that so? You shouldn't have to feel that way! Now, tell me what it is that's been troubling you," Lucius said.

"Well, I think you know… that is, I'm under a curse," Draco said. Lucius raised an eyebrow.

"A curse? ...I see. Tell me more about this curse."

"Well, erm, I've been having dreams, father. And I think I'm falling in love with…" Draco stopped short. What would his father say? Especially if this curse thing was all a fluke?

"With who?"

"…A Weasley." Lucius narrowed his eyes at his son.

"I see. So it is true then," he said.

"What is true?" Draco asked stupidly.

"You indeed are under a curse. A curse that I, regrettably, have put you under. Now before you jump to conclusions, please allow me to explain," he said calmly.

"Please do," said Draco.

"Alright. Now, when I was your age, 7th year, and attending Hogwarts, I was Head Boy. Head Girl was the beautiful… Gryffindor… Lily Evans. She was… enchanting. I was in love. And I thought she returned that love. But she was too pure, too innocent… She was good, and I, evil, swayed by the preachings of the Dark Lord. She could not love a monster like me. But I was a stubborn fool. I loved her so much, I thought that I could make her love me back. I… I kidnapped her. But she'd been seeing that good-for-nothing git, James Potter. And I told her that if she did not confess her love for me, I would kill Potter. But Potter found us; he found her, and he stopped me. I couldn't go on… the two of them were so damn in love with each other, it made me sick… I left Hogwarts, never wanting to see them again. I never wanted to see Lily again. She'd betrayed me. And then I joined the Dark Lord, and I was gladwhe he'd killed the two fools," Lucius explained.

"But, Father, what about the curse?" Draco asked.

"Ah yes, the curse. I was getting to that. Now before I joined the Dark Lord, and right after the kidnapping incident, I was so angry at the both of them. I tried putting a vengeance curse on them, but something went wrong. The curse took no effect. It wasn't until years later that I found out the curse I used would affect our descendants. The descendants of the Potters, and, of course, of me," Lucius explained.

"But what about Ginny? What did she do to deserve this?" Draco asked.

"Ah, the Weasley girl. Yes, I suppose it was fate that the curse would choose her to represent Lily. It's strange, though. The girl is very pretty, not like Lily was, but in her own way. Her hair, though, is not like the regular, Weasley-red colour. It's darker; it's the same exact shade as Lily's. Yes, I'm sure that fate chose her for a reason. It must be the girl's destiny…"

"But why? I don't get it! Why does she have to be involved? She can't choose between me and Potter! It's not fair!"

"She can choose, and she will. And in the end, she will not choose you."

"No!" Draco shouted, not caring how loud he was.

"Draco, calm down! Listen to me, son. The curse was an accident, and I don't know very much about it… but there's still a chance you _can_ change the ending! Don't let Potter get the girl, Draco! You have to do this… do this for me!" Lucius said.

"Father… I can't…"

"Yes, you can! Make me proud, son!"

"I… I'll do my best," Draco said.

"Good.Imust leave now. Your poor mother's at home, waiting for me," Lucius said, getting up.

"Dad?" Lucius stopped and looked at his son.

"Yes?"

"If you loved Lily, why'd you marry Mum?"

"…Because she was an old family friend. And she was deeply in love with me," Lucius explained tentatively.

"Oh."

"Well, enough of this. I must be on my way. Goodbye, Draco, and don't forget what I've told you!"

"I won't. Goodbye." Lucius left the shop and Draco sat there for a moment or two, thinking about what he'd just found out. He got up and left the shop a moment later, wondering where he could find Ginny…

Draco took in the scent of butterbeer and firewhiskey as he walked past the Three Broomsticks. He stopped in front if the store, looking in the window. There was Ginny, sitting in a small booth, next to Harry, Hermione, and Ron. Draco sighed before opening the door and stepping inside.

Ginny looked up at him and smiled, before telling Harry, Hermione and Ron that she'd be right back. She stood up and walked past Draco, nudging him slightly, and then out the door. Draco guessed that she wanted him to follow her, and turned around.

When they were both outside and alone, Ginny spoke.

"Well?"

"Well? Oh…" Draco suddenly didn't feel very comfortable around her. He didn't want to talk about what he'd just heard from his father. Not with her. "…My dadtried to put a curse on Potter's parents, but it went wrong, and now the curse is on us. He doesn't know how to stop it, but he thinks we can change it," he said, trying to avoid talking about the kidnapping part.

"But… what happened between your father and Harry's parents?" Ginny questioned.

"Oh… well, they were in love. I mean, My dad and Potter's mum. Well, actually, I don't think Potter's mum loved him back. Um…"

"Oh."

"Oh? What do you mean by oh?" Draco asked.

"I mean- Oh, so that's why you're in love with me. Because of a curse, and not of your own free will," Ginny said.

"What? Ginny, that's not true! I mean, the curse part is, but that's not why I love you! If there were no curse, I'd-"

"You'd hate my guts," Ginny finished the sentence for him.

"No. I'd still love you! Sure, I'd be a little ignorant towards you at first, but then I would see you flying on your broomstick in the middle of the night, and I'd offer to give you flying lessons. And then we would become friends, and I'd grow fond of you. And then I would take you under Lover's Tree and kiss you, and you'd kiss me back. And we'd be in love with each other."

Ginny was at a loss for words. She sighed deeply, before resting her hand on Draco's shoulder.

"Exactly," she said, before leaning in and kissing him on the lips. He kissed her back intimately, placing his arms around her, vowing never to let go…

"Ginny?" A voice broke their embrace, and Ginny looked up at it's owner.

"Harry! I…"

"You what? You can explain? I think seeing this explains more than enough for me," Harry said.

"Harry, no!"

"I'm sorry, Ginny, I just can't put up with this," he said.

"Harry… forget about that! You didn't see it… It was nothing, it was…" Ginny couldn't explain, after all. Because she knew that it had meant something to her.

"_Don't tell me that didn't mean anything!" _Draco's words from that day still rang clearly in her head. She moved closer to Harry and put her arm out to touch him, but he just pushed her away.

"What's the matter, Potter? You didn't know that Ginny still loved me? Oh, that's a shame…" Draco smirked.

"Shut up, Malfoy!" Harry said sternly.

"Why should I? You lost, Potter! It's over!" Harry took out his wand and pointed it at Draco, but Draco was quicker.

"_Crucio_!" In a moment, Harry was on the ground, in pain. Ginny screamed. Draco lifted his wand and put a hand over Ginny's mouth. She grabbed his arm and twisted, before taking out her own wand.

"What do you think you're doing?" Draco asked her.

"Stopping you. I love him!" she said plainly.

"No, you don't! You can't love him!" Draco said.

"I do!" she screamed at him. Harry slowly got up and stood behind Ginny, putting his arms around her protectively.

"_You lost, Malfoy. It's over,_" Harry said. Draco scowled and walked away from the scene, angry. He hadn't lost yet. He couldn't have!

* * *

**Well? What did you think? Was Lucius enjoyable enough? And how do you think the ending will go now? If you haven't all realized yet, we _are_ nearing an end. There will be 2 chapters left, at the least. So please enjoy them. And don't forget to review!**


	11. That's all I ask

**Hello everyone! I know I took a while to update, but here it is! There is only one last chapter after this, aren't you excited? So hurry and read! Hehe.

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****Chapter 11**

"_You lost, Malfoy. It's over."_

Friday night, Draco paced back and forth in the Slytherin common room, unsure of what to do. His friends tried consoling him, and asked him what was wrong with him. He refused to tell them anything.

There still had to be a way of winning Ginny over. Because he knew that she still loved him. And if she ended up with Harry, he wouldn't be able to live with himself. He wanted to, _needed_ to change the ending… he would not suffer his father's fate.

-

Ginny and Harry sat in the Gryffindor common room that same night, having a serious conversation. Ginny had already apologized for kissing Draco; she said that she didn't know what she was doing. She said that she'd almost forgotten why she was scared of Draco. Because he was a death eater… a merciless, sadistic, follower of the Dark Lord. And how could somebody without a heart claim to love her?

"Harry, I'm still scared… I need you."

"There's nothing to worry about, Ginny. I'll protect you."

The words were so warm, so comforting. She loved hearing his voice, because it always calmed her down, and she knew she could always confide in him. He reminded her, in a way, of her brothers. But she had so many brothers, that she didn't need one more. Instead, Harry was somebody she could love in a more intimate way.

"Harry… what about you? Who's going to protect you?" The question came out of nowhere, it seemed.

"I'll take care of myself, of course," he replied.

"No… that's not true. We all need someone to look out for us. So… I'll look out for you, if you want. I promise to protect you," she said. Harry smiled and kissed her on the forehead.

"I love you," he said. Ginny sighed and rested her arm on his shoulder.

-

_She's afraid of me,_ thought Draco. _Why_? _Where did I go wrong?_

He thought back to that one night when they had kissed underneath the tree… when she'd found out his secret.

_I let her down._

He thought back to just hours earlier, when he'd used an unforgivable curse on Harry.

_God, I'm such an idiot!_

He ran up immediately to his dormitory and took out his broom. He ran to the window and threw it open, climbing onto his broom. Then he flew out.

He flew at lightning speed towards the lake and circled it three times, then soared over the forbidden forest. He needed to have that feeling… the one he'd felt when he'd fallen for her. He needed to feel the wind in his face again.

He flew towards the boundaries of the Hogwarts ground. He wanted so badly to run away right now, to get away from everything. Maybe if he just let Harry have Ginny, Ginny would be better off…

No. He'd promised his father that he wouldn't let him down. So he had to do this, no matter what. He took a deep breath before soaring back to the castle. He stopped in front of the window… _her_ window. He peered inside. It was empty, and still early for her bedtime on a Friday night. She was probably with Harry in the common room…

Draco tried to open the window; it was locked. He used an unlocking spell and pushed the window open, climbing inside. He would wait here for her, all night if he had to.

-

Ginny said good night to Harry, and headed for the girl's dormitories. She was tired; it was 11 pm, and time to sleep. The events of the day had racked her mind for so long, but it was time to rest now. She didn't want to think about Draco, and she certainly did not want to see him. That's why she screamed when she opened her door to find him sitting on her bed.

"_Silencio_!" Draco's spell hit her and she was immediately silenced. She tried to get out, but Draco raised his wand and the door behind her closed and locked.

"Draco…" she mouthed. He raised his wand and took the silencing charm off of her.

"Don't scream now, love," he said.

"What do you think you're doing?" She asked nervously.

"I guess you can say I'm fulfilling the curse," he answered.

"What do you mean?"

"My father kidnapped Potter's mum, Ginny. So I'm kidnapping you. Don't worry, I won't do anything… harmful. I'm just going to talk some sense into you. Now…" Draco looked around the dark room, "Where's your roommate?"

"I don't know," she answered truthfully.

"Well, just in case, we're going to go somewhere else," he said.

"You can't make me…"

"_Expelliarmus_!" Her wand flew from her pocket and into Draco's hands. "Now, get your broom. We're going for a little ride." Ginny reluctantly obeyed and they went outside on their brooms. Draco flew towards Hogwarts Hill and made sure Ginny followed him. When they landed on top of the hill, he put a spell on her to make her stay put.

"D-draco, I won't run away… just talk to me. I won't run away…" she said softly.

"I believe you, love. But I don't want your _lover _to find us. Forgive me, I meant to say 'that stupid git who thinks you belong to him.' That's right, Ginny. It's not me, but Harry who treats you that way. I never did anything wrong, and if I did, then please let me know."

"You're evil!"

"Now _that_ is a misconception. I'm not really evil," he said.

"Yes you are! You have the dark mark," she reminded him.

"Oh, that. Yes, I know that makes me seem evil, but I'm only joining that side so I won't get myself killed. Let me rephrase that: I'm only joining that side so that my father won't kill me," he said. Ginny laughed nervously.

"You expect me to believe that? That your father threatened you? This being the same man who fell in love with Harry's mum?"

"Well, okay, not threatened me, exactly. But my loyalties lie with my father and my family. I couldn't refuse the dark mark," he said.

"Well," said Ginny, gaining confidence, "that makes you my enemy! Because I promised to protect and love Harry Potter, the Dark Lord's sworn enemy! So you're my enemy, Draco!"

"That's not true, Ginny," Draco said, "because enemies cannot love each other."

"You can't love if you don't have a heart!" she screamed at him.

"I don't have a heart? How can you say that? I'm getting fed up with you, Ginny!"

"Good, then leave me alone!" she shouted. _Leave me alone. _Draco had once told her the same thing. And it had hurt her to hear those words. "Why…" she said to herself.

"Why?" Draco had heard her, "Why what?"

"Why… do you keep telling me that you love me?"

"Because it's the truth," he said. "I need you." _I need you._ She'd never heard anyone say those words, had she? Harry even told her that he didn't need her. He had said that he could take care of himself, hadn't she? Even after she said she'd needed him…

"You do?" She said softly.

"Yes, of course I do! I've been trying to tell you that. Whenever I'm not with you, I feel terrible," he explained.

"Really?" she replied.

"OW!" Draco clutched his wrist, the one with the dark mark on it. Ginny smirked.

"Prove it!" she said, "Don't answer you Lord when he calls you."

"Ginny, no… You want me to die?" he asked.

"How do you know you'll die if you don't go?" she asked.

"It's a rule. Anyone who has the dark mark that does not answer immediately after the third call will be killed," he explained.

"Is there any other way?"

"No."

"Then… then let me go. I've made my decision, and it's Harry," she said calmly.

"No!" Draco screamed. He couldn't lose… not yet!

"Let me go, Draco," she said.

"I need you!" he shouted, reaching his other arm out towards her.

"_Don't touch her_." Those three words sent a chill through Ginny's spine. She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned around.

"Harry…"

"How did you find us?" Draco asked.

"I was in my room when Ginny's roommate ran in and told me that she saw you and Draco fly out the window towards Hogwarts Hill," he explained.

"Dammit!" Draco shrieked, "Why did you have to come? I… AHHHHHHHH!" He screamed as his arms seared with twice the amount of pain then the first calling.

"Draco!" Ginny shrieked.

"I have to go… If I don't go after one more call, he'll kill me! Don't you understand?"

"I'm so sorry, Draco. I'll miss you," she said.

"Damn… it can't end this way," he said, pulling out his wand and pointing it at Harry. "_Expelliarmus!"_

"What are you doing, Malfoy?" Harry said as his wand flew into Draco's hands.

"I'm going to kill you, to please my Lord," Draco said, "And to show Ginny that nothing can come between us! _Crucio!_"

Harry fell to the ground in pain.

"Stop it!" Ginny screamed. Draco ignored her and kept the spell on him until he fell unconscious.

"Harry!" Ginny shrieked.

"_Avada-"_ But before Draco could finish saying the incantation for the killing curse, Ginny flung himself in front of Harry.

"You'll have to kill me first," she said.

"No, Ginny! Get out of the way! I don't want to hurt you!" He said.

"It's too late for that!" she cried. Draco grabbed her arm and forcefully pulled her out of the way. She screamed at him and tried to free herself, but it was no use as Harry lay on the floor unconscious.

"Now, to get this over with before the third calling… AHHHHHHHH!" The third calling was three times as painful as the first, and sent Draco to the ground, howling for release. He watched as Ginny ran to Harry's side… Harry's side, and not his. She looked up at him and mouthed "_Goodbye_."

"NO!" Finally, Draco pulled out his wand and pointed it at his arm and muttered an incantation. Ginny watched in horror and shock as half of Draco's arm detached itself from his body, and blood oozed out.

He looked up at her and smiled one of his rare smiles. The pain from his bleeding arm was nothing compared to the call of the Dark Lord, and he was glad that that was over.

"I don't have the Dark Mark anymore," he explained, "So they can't kill me."

"Draco…why?" Ginny said, too stunned to move from her position next to Harry's unconscious form.

"It was the only way," he said, "Because I need you."

Ginny lowered her head before letting a tear escape. She wiped her eyes and looked up at Draco. "I need you too." Draco moved closer towards her and pulled her and Harry's wands out from his pocket, handing them to her. She took them.

"Take him back to the castle," he said, pointing to Harry, "He needs you more than I do. He loves you, and you love him, so you belong together."

"No… Draco, I love him, but… He doesn't need me more than you do. I understand now. And I love you too, so… I want to stay with you. And…" Another tear escaped from her eyes and Draco wiped it away with his finger.

"Here, let's take him back to the castle together. Madam Pomfrey will take care of him," he said. Ginny nodded. They picked Harry up and placed him on Ginny's broomstick, where she flew him back to the castle, Draco right behind her.

* * *

**So I know I sort of ended it in a cliffhanger, but the next chapter is the epilogue, which will explain everything. So I'll update as soon as possible. **


	12. Epilogue

**Well, I updated after only a day. I couldn't wait any longer! So here it is, the finale, the epilogue, and the END. **

* * *

**Epilogue **

Draco Malfoy called himself foolish. He admitted it to Ginny, and apologized over and over after that one day. He even apologized to Harry too… the effects of the curse, after all, was what had driven him to wanting to kill Harry. But in the end, Draco was able to save himself. Had it not been for the Dark Lord's call, he might have gone crazy and finished Harry off. But he wasn't a murderer. In the end, it was not the pain of the Dark Mark that had saved him, but the greater pain that he felt inside after seeing that Ginny would rather have Harry than a servant of the Dark Lord. That's why he did it. That's why he reverted to the only known possible way of getting rid of the Dark Mark. Because Ginny meant so much more to him than that. So the question now is, who did Ginny end up with?

-

_January 1st, five years later…_

"Are you sure you want to see him after all these years?"

"Yes," Ginny replied, holding her book tightly to her side. She gave her husband a quick hug before throwing the floo powder into the fireplace. She stepped into the green flames and said, very clearly, "St. Mungo's Hospital."

She stepped out of the fireplace at St. Mungo's and looked around once. Then she stepped up to the front desk. There sat the receptionist, a young witch with pretty blue eyes and a bright smile.

"Hello, Welcome to St. Mungo's, how may I help you?" she said.

"I heard that _he _was being treated here, after the fight. Do you think… Can I go to see him?" Ginny asked very calmly. The receptionist's smile faded a little, but she nodded and handed Ginny a visitor's pass.

"He's in room 303."

Ginny said 'thank you,' and headed towards the moving spiral staircase, much like the one leading to Dumbledore's office. She got off on the third floor and entered the hospital room, number 303.

There, in the hospital bed, was Harry Potter. Ginny knelt down beside him and he smiled at her.

"Hey, Ginny," he said.

"Harry… Happy New Year."

"Happy New Year," he said, beaming from where he lay.

"Oh, Harry! What happened to you?" Ginny asked, unable to contain herself.

"Well, everyone said I would kill Voldemort, and I did. But nobody expected the consequences it would come with. His death affected me… it affected my entire body, and now I'm completely paralyzed…"

"No!"

"Don't worry, they're doing all they can to get me back to normal. I'll be fine, Ginny," he said with a weak smile.

"Harry… I promised you once that I would protect you, and I never did. I'm so sorry!" She hugged his stiff body, sobbing. He looked down at her… she was more beautiful than ever, with her long red locks flowing gracefully from her head, and her body having filled out more since the last time he'd seen her…

She was just 17 years old, and it was after Hogwarts. She said goodbye to him for the last time, because she was going to stay with Draco Malfoy. Harry had let her go… she loved Draco more than him, in the end. The two lovers went into hiding as the war grew worse. Many died, including her brother, Ron. And then, just a few months ago, and five years after Hogwarts, Harry had come face to face with Voldemort himself. And he was able to defeat him, although it cost himcontrol over his entire body.

"You did protect me, Ginny. You protected me from having never loved anyone. Because you were the only one I ever loved," he said. This made Ginny cry. She hadn't returned that love. And Harry had needed her, after all, but he couldn't express it. She'd left him for Draco, and she'd broken his heart.

"I'm so sorry… I wish I could say that I loved you back, but I can't. I only loved you the way a sister loves her brother," Ginny said. Harry smiled.

"That's enough for me," he said. She lifted her head up and looked at him. Then she looked down at her book and smiled.

"I almost forgot. I'm going to read you a book, Harry," she said.

"A book? Sure," he said, grinning. Nobody had offered to do anything like that for him while he'd been in the hospital. Ginny opened the book and read the title page:

"_The Phantom of the Opera, by Gaston Leroux._" He'd never heard of the book before, but he listened intently as Ginny's soft voice began to read the contents of the story.

Before long, it was nighttime. Ginny was coming to the end of the book now, and Harry was very interested to see how it would end up. The story reminded him of something, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

After reading the last sentence, Ginny closed the book and stared at it for a while, lost in thought.

"Is that really how the ending goes?" Harry said, breaking her concentration. Ginny looked up at him and nodded.

"But I changed it," she said, "I changed the ending a long time ago…."

Harry smiled at her and she cupped his cheek in her hand, before leaning towards him and kissing him long and full on the lips.

"I love you, Harry." she said to him.

"I love you too," he said. "It's getting late… your husband will be waiting for you."

"Yes, of course. I almost forgot," Ginny said. She stood up wiped her tear-stained face, for she had cried a little during the book.

"Goodbye, Ginny," Harry said to her.

"Goodbye," she said to him, before turning on her heel and walking out of the room, and out of his life.

Harry knew he might not ever see her again, but there was nothing else he could do. He was the one who defeated Voldemort, and that was one of his purposes in life. The other purpose was to make sure Ginny was happy. He had fulfilled both of those purposes.

The end.

-

**Did the last paragraphsound corny? What did you guys think of it as a whole? It was sort of a sad ending, wasn't it? I hope you liked it, though! I'm going to miss all of my reviewers! You guys seriously rock. Thanks so much for keeping this story alive. If you liked it that much, read some of my other stories, too!**

**Thanks again.**

**Love ya always, **

**FullMoon-Insanity**


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